Lewis Hamilton has admitted that he is struggling to get the best out of his Mercedes in recent races.

The Briton, who sealed his third world title with victory at the United States Grand Prix last month, has been beaten by teammate Nico Rosberg in every race since then.

However, speaking after qualifying at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he will start from second on the grid, Hamilton has suggested he could not do anything to beat his Mercedes rival to pole position.

He told reporters: "Generally it gets better in the race, but for a while I'm just struggling on the edge of the car. It was a lot more comfortable in the beginning of the year for me. Coming into this weekend I've tried to make some changes.

"I'm disappointed with myself a little bit with one of the things I've taken off the car, but at the end of the day I couldn't do anything. I don't know really, I've generally struggled all weekend, but Nico did such a good job today, in particular in Q3.

"It doesn't really matter what the [qualifying] number is, what matters are the wins and the championship. There are areas to improve the car on my side, and I'm sure we'll get there."

Kimi Raikkonen will start from third on the grid for Ferrari, but his teammate Sebastian Vettel is down in 16th place.