Category: Lewis hamilton news

 

Lewis Hamilton given ‘last chance’ at Ferrari says former boss

 

Former Ferrari president Luca Di Montezemolo has stated that Lewis Hamilton’s move to the Formula 1 team is his ‘last chance’ to win a world title, as he delivered his verdict on the seven-time world champion.

 

Di Montezemolo returned to the F1 paddock at the Bahrain Grand Prix, where he bemoaned Ferrari’s lacklustre start to the season and claimed they lacked ‘leadership’ and a ‘soul’.

 

The 77-year-old also expressed his support for Mercedes and Italian driver Kimi Antonelli, hinting that he would like to have seen the youngster at Ferrari, after he suggested he should have gone to Sauber first – the team often acting as a warm-up seat for future Ferrari drivers.

 

Ferrari’s former chief also spoke on the man Antonelli replaced, Lewis Hamilton, and said to Sky Sports Italia: “Hamilton is a great driver and part of Formula 1 history, he knows this is his last chance. He came to Ferrari to win and to end his career there.”

 

Can Hamilton win a title at Ferrari?

The first four rounds of Hamilton’s Ferrari career have offered a mixed bag of results, ranging from a sprint race victory to a disqualification at the same weekend in Shanghai.

 

Hamilton remained hopeful that a series of upgrades in Bahrain would improve Ferrari’s performance, but a P9 spot in qualifying prompted him to deliver a curt interview reminiscent of his Mercedes days.

 

Whilst Hamilton went on to finish the race in fifth, he stated afterwards that he ‘needed to do a better job’ for Ferrari but nevertheless offered a glimmer of hope regarding their new upgrades which he described as ‘positive’.

 

The chance of an eighth world title with Ferrari feels out of reach already in 2025, as McLaren once again proved to be the dominant car in Bahrain after Oscar Piastri’s stunning victory.

 

Hamilton is now 52 points behind championship leader Lando Norris in the drivers’ standings, but is also crucially off the pace compared to his team-mate Charles Leclerc in qualifying and races.

 

 

 

 

 

The Formula 1 world never pauses, and for Scuderia Ferrari, drama is a constant shadow.

 

After a disappointing Bahrain Grand Prix that yielded fourth and fifth-place finishes, the Maranello squad faces intense scrutiny heading into the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Whispers of early challenges in Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari journey only amplify the pressure.

 

“Obviously, it’s disappointing when you give everything and finish fourth — it doesn’t make me smile,” Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc said. “But for now, this is the situation we’re in. We did our best this weekend, but our best isn’t enough.”

 

Ferrari is struggling so far in 2025

ferrari formula 1 F1 australia grand prix

 

Leclerc’s words capture Ferrari’s 2025 struggles. There have been no podiums yet, except for Hamilton’s Sprint race win at the Chinese Grand Prix. Bahrain’s result, though point-scoring, was a missed chance for Leclerc, who briefly contended for third before strategy faltered.

 

Ferrari chose a different strategy for Bahrain by starting on the medium compound tires. This was meant to give Leclerc and Hamilton flexibility and a potentially stronger final stint on softs, but it cost Leclerc two places at the start, behind George Russell and Lando Norris. The race changed dramatically with the safety car’s presence, despite a strong second stint where Leclerc was significantly faster than second-place finisher Russell at times.

 

This entrance of the safety card forced Ferrari into what they believed was the “safest option” – the hard compound tire – as they deemed a long final stint on softs too “ambitious.” Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said after the race, “The safety car emerged at the worst possible moment.”

 

Despite the setbacks caused by this tire strategy, Ferrari’s run at Bahrain did show promise. The new floor in Sakhir reduced the performance deficit and the data showed a larger operating window than in Suzuka. The smooth, low-downforce Jeddah circuit could suit the SF-25 further, allowing Ferrari to run lower and optimize, increasing their performance window by 30 percent over Bahrain.

 

Is the Lewis Hamilton marriage already on the rocks?

Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Formula 1

While the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix looks more positive for Ferrari, rumors about Lewis Hamilton’s integration into the Scuderia Ferrari team have already started circulating.

 

During Bahrain qualifying, Hamilton made a mistake which dropped him to ninth place before he gave the team a thorough apology over the radio. Vasseur confirmed he needed to work harder on integrating Hamilton, who is still smarting from his stay at Mercedes and could perhaps be reluctant to trust his new team. Vasseur understood Hamilton’s frustration because it demonstrated his competitive mindset. The adjustment period has proven challenging because Hamilton described the Ferrari car as “so alien” after Bahrain. Not exactly a ringing endorsement from the world champion.

 

Adding to the external speculation, even F1 CEO and former Ferrari figure Stefano Domenicali has weighed in, suggesting current Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli as a potential future replacement for Hamilton at Ferrari. While Domenicali’s view is not an internal Ferrari assessment and faces resistance from Mercedes, it highlights the intense scrutiny surrounding Hamilton’s early performances with the Scuderia.

 

The team will travel to Saudi Arabia with hopes that circuit characteristics and their new floor will produce their first podium of the season. However, the early whispers about Lewis Hamilton serve as a reminder that the pressure at Ferrari is always immense, and the “continuing saga” at the Prancing Horse is far from over. As Vasseur has suggested, the team must stay calm as they work through both on-track performance and off-track speculation.

 

 

At the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix, Ferrari’s star duo-Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton-made waves even before hitting the track. While the rest of the grid leaned towards practical luxury SUVs-the Ferrari drivers chose stunning Maseratis, turning heads with their luxury vehicles.

 

Renowned photographer Kym Illman shared his keen observations on the car lineup. Among the fleet of vehicles bringing drivers to the track in Bahrain, Maserati stood out with two of the F1’s biggest choosing it as their ride.

 

Leclerc was seen stepping out of a Maserati Ghibli, a sleek and powerful luxury sports sedan, starting at $110,995. Hamilton, not to be outdone, was in a Maserati Grecale, a more compact yet equally luxurious crossover-with an estimated value of $77,995 after trim and options.

 

Illman pointed out that the luxury lineup at the Bahrain Grand Prix was impressive, with several other drivers also arriving in distinct vehicles.

Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda drove Ford Explorers, Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris drove in Ford Expeditions, and Oscar Piastri opted for a Jet2 T2 XWD. Meanwhile, the likes of George Russell, Kimi Antonelli, and Fernando Alonso were seen in top-tier vehicles adding to the spectacle of luxury.

 

Yet, it was the Ferrari drivers, with their Maseratis, that stole the spotlight. Their choice of car highlighted more than luxury-it underscored a shared flair for precision and style. In a sport where every detail matters, these subtle gestures often resonate just as strongly as performance on the track.

 

It also speaks to a level of synchronization between the drivers, even before they’ve had the chance to align their performance during the race weekend.

 

Interestingly, Hamilton didn’t just arrive in style-he arrived prepared. The seven-time World Champion had a second car reserved for his crew, which likely included his long-time trainer Angela Cullen, photographer, or manager Marc Hynes.

It’s a small but telling detail: Hamilton’s meticulous approach extends beyond the cockpit, ensuring his entire entourage moves with the same level of precision and comfort.

 

On the track, the mindset showed. Despite a tough qualifying session that saw him start from ninth, Hamilton delivered a resilient drive. He climbed through the field to finish just behind the Monegasque showing a clear sign that he’s beginning to find his rhythm with Ferrari.

 

Frustration for both Ferrari drivers revealed in F1 Bahrain Grand Prix

 

 

Lewis Hamilton left the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix as the official ‘driver of the day’ after his run to fifth.

 

It represented a remarkable 24-hour turnaround after his despondency on Saturday post-qualifying.

 

“It happens every Saturday,” he sighed after qualifying ninth but he would enjoy a far more productive grand prix in Lusail.

 

Hamilton was P5, one place behind teammate Charles Leclerc, giving Ferrari their best grand prix finish of the season.

 

However, that speaks volumes about the struggles faced by Ferrari who brought a slew of upgrades to Bahrain to somehow jolt life into their campaign.

 

Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari ‘closed the gap’

 

“It’s been tricky, a tricky start for Lewis at Ferrari. Yesterday he was particularly down,” Sky Sports’ Naomi Schiff said.

 

“Coming into this weekend, it felt like energy was particularly low.

 

“From our understanding, we hear that they aren’t able to run the car in the optimum setup.

 

“That has been frustrating for both drivers.

 

“They brought the new floor here this weekend. Clearly they have closed the gap because both Charles and Lewis, towards the end, were very competitive.

 

“Lewis always come back alive on a Sunday. His issues are on a Saturday with qualifying pace.

 

“But with long run pace situations, he’s always a lot more on it. You can feel his energy is lifted, as soon as he delivers performance.”

 

Leclerc left Bahrain bemoaning Ferrari’s lack of pace, but for Hamilton his issues clearly lie during qualifying.

 

It was suggested that, next weekend at the F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Ferrari tell Hamilton to test quali sims during practice sessions on the Friday.

 

“I don’t know,” was Schiff’s reaction. “I guess that’s an option – but it feels like something you do with a younger driver.

 

“Lewis understands the processes to get that car into the window it needs to be in qualifying.

 

“I don’t know what’s lacking with him. Whether it’s confidence in the car, he’s talking about engine braking, every week it seems he’s mentioning more issues that he’s struggling to get on top of, after coming from another team.

 

“For him it’s about being on track, driving as much as possible, getting to know this car, getting on top of those issues in the lower fuel runs.”

 

Hamilton’s season so far has peaked with a sprint race win in China but P5 in Bahrain is his best grand prix result so far.

 

 

Lewis Hamilton on Lewis Hamilton: Didn’t it just sound like him last year?

 

Down on pace in qualifying in Bahrain, Karun Chandhok says it was like watching Lewis Hamilton “wear the Mercedes uniform” again in a repeat of last year’s qualifying woes.

 

Last season, his last year with Mercedes, Hamilton lost his qualifying head-to-head against George Russell. It was only his second qualifying defeat in his 18 years on the F1 grid.

 

What is going wrong for Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari?

The Briton said at the time: “Who knows? I’m definitely not fast anymore.”

 

It was a shocking admission from the driver who holds the record for the most pole positions ever in Formula 1, 104.

 

But swapping silver for red, many pundits believed the seven-time World Champion would be revitalised even if he was making the move at age 40.

 

A pole position in Sprint qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix gave credence to that, Hamilton following that up with a lights-to-flag victory to earn Ferrari a maiden Sprint win.

 

However, in qualifying for the Grands Prix, he trails his team-mate Charles Leclerc 3-1 and finished a concerning six-tenths down on the Monegasque driver in Bahrain on Saturday.

 

But Hamilton blamed his Japanese GP deficit to his team-mate on an undisclosed part that wasn’t performing as it should, in Bahrain he admitted this one was on him.

 

He told media, including PlanetF1: “I’m just not doing a good enough job on my side so I’ve just got to keep improving. It’s definitely not a good feeling, for sure.”

 

Quizzed on what he could do to improve his pace, he replied: “I really don’t know. I don’t have a lot of answers for you guys, I just wasn’t quick today.”

 

Speaking to DAZN, he added: “Saturdays are the worst days for me. At the moment I don’t feel hopeful but I’ll try to figure out some way of getting a little further up. But at the moment just failing the team.

 

“The car has improved [with the upgrades], it’s just my driving.”

 

Hamilton’s despondent rang out loud for Chandhok, who says it sounds all too familiar.

 

“I heard his comments today and he sounded completely like he was on the floor,” the former F1 driver told Sky F1.

 

“If I closed my eyes, it was like watching him wear the Mercedes uniform last year.

 

“Didn’t it just sound like him last year? How many times last year did we hear him say, ‘I can’t qualify.’

 

“I just closed my eyes and thought, ‘Is he in a Mercedes race-suit again?’ It just felt like last year again. I don’t know what’s happened.”

 

Asked whether age given Hamilton is now 40 has played a part in the Briton’s one-lap pace, Chandhok replied: “With age, the thing that you lose is the ultimate speed in qualifying, but six-tenths to Leclerc, it was a lot.”

 

Hamilton is hoping to bounce back in Sunday’s 53-lap Bahrain Grand Prix, at least work his way into the top five.

 

Asked about his prospects, he replied: “Hopefully top five. I’ll try to see if I can get into the top five, we’ll see.’

 

Lewis Hamilton driving the Ferrari SF-25 during Bahrain Grand Prix practice

Lewis Hamilton experienced the upgraded Ferrari SF-25 for the first time in Bahrain practice

 

Ferrari arrived at the Bahrain Grand Prix armed with an upgraded floor among a suite of early alterations to their SF-25.

 

And Lewis Hamilton has given the thumbs up, confirming that Ferrari’s upgrades are “definitely working” after the opening day of track action in Bahrain.

 

Ferrari upgrades working: Lewis Hamilton one to watch in Bahrain?

After a rocky start to the F1 2025 campaign for Ferrari – the team P4 in the Constructors’ standings and already 76 points behind leaders McLaren – the Scuderia are looking to boost their SF-25 challenger with the introduction of a redesigned floor, floor edges and diffuser for the Bahrain Grand Prix.

 

The opening practice session was not particularly representative with scorching heat leading to widespread balance and grip issues across the grid, and by the end of FP2, Charles Leclerc was the highest-ranking Ferrari in P4 – half a second off the pace of session-topper Oscar Piastri in the McLaren – with Hamilton P8 and a second off the pace.

 

“Same old Fridays,” Hamilton reflected after FP2.

 

“It was fun. Quite difficult in the morning, as always, with the temperature being so high. The grip was terrible on the hard tyre for the first run. There’s quite a big shock from hard to soft, which was much better.

 

“But we made some changes, and the car felt pretty decent then in [F]P2.”

 

And so asked what the main focus is for Ferrari at this point going into qualifying and the race, Hamilton added: “Just consistency. Just pulling the laps together, having a car that’s easy to drive and that’s consistent through the lap.

 

“At the moment, it’s a bit different between low, medium and high [speed], as you often have, and so we’re just trying to finesse it, trying to tweak it, and then make sure that we have good long run pace, because that’s where you need to be strong here in particular.”

 

But, onto the killer question. Will these Ferrari upgrades prove a success with these missions in mind?

 

In a huge boost for the Scuderia, Hamilton suggested so.

 

“The upgrades are definitely working,” he confirmed. “And big, big thank you to everyone back home for working so hard on bringing the upgrades, because it’s never an easy thing. It’s a lot of work that goes on in the windtunnel and a lot of work that goes on in fabricating and putting together these floors.

 

“So, it’s just good to see that we’re taking steps forwards, and yeah, we’re trying to now extract more from it.

 

“I hope that we can make the right steps overnight into tomorrow.”

 

 

 

 

F1 News Today: Lewis Hamilton Ferrari gamble confirmed as FIA ratify wing change

 

Ferrari have confirmed that they have brought a raft of upgrades to the Bahrain Grand Prix after a disappointing start to the season for Lewis Hamilton.

 

 

 

FIA confirm Red Bull change for Bahrain GP after McLaren wing drama

 

The FIA have confirmed that Red Bull are running a modified front wing this weekend, having published their ‘car presentation submissions’ document.

 

 

 

Sky Sports F1 legend claps back over ‘exciting’ way to spice up the sport

 

Martin Brundle has clapped back at Jeremy Clarkson’s suggestion on how to spice up Formula 1, defending the sport from claims that it is boring.

 

TRENDING

FIA announce Red Bull penalty verdict after Bahrain Grand Prix incident

 

 

FIA confirm official curfew breach for McLaren F1 team at Bahrain Grand Prix

 

The FIA have confirmed that McLaren were found to have breached curfew at the Bahrain Grand Prix ahead of the first day of practice this weekend.

 

 

 

F1 champion’s steering wheel COMES OFF at Bahrain Grand Prix

 

Fernando Alonso’s 2025 season has gone from bad to worse during FP2 at the Bahrain Grand Prix, where his steering wheel came off.

 

 

 

FIA announce Max Verstappen engine change at Bahrain Grand Prix

 

The FIA have confirmed that Max Verstappen’s Red Bull has received engine changes, alongside Yuki Tsunoda’s RB21 and the Racing Bulls of Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson.

 

 

According to Jamie Chadwick, Lewis Hamilton has “exceeded expectations” in his early days with the Ferrari squad, as seen by his sprint victory in China. Hamilton’s greatest major race result was eighth place in Japan. Watch every session of the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend starting on Friday on Sky Sports F1.

According to Le Mans Series driver Jamie Chadwick, Lewis Hamilton has “exceeded expectations” at Ferrari but will find it difficult to “make a dent” at this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. Last Sunday’s seventh-place finish in Japan was Hamilton’s highest finish for the Scuderia in the first three races of 2025. On his team debut in Australia, he finished in 10th place, and after finishing in sixth place in China, he was disqualified for excessive plank wear.

The seven-time world champion, however, claimed victory in the Chinese sprint race and stated during the Japanese Grand Prix that Ferrari had now identified a problem with his car’s poor performance, which he thinks would result in an improvement. The Constructors’ Championship currently has the Italian team 76 points behind McLaren.

 

Lewis Hamilton endured a frustrating Japanese Grand Prix having failed to pass both Mercedes drivers to get into the top five.

 

The seven-time world champion went into the race weekend off the back of disqualification in China due to technical infringement, which Ferrari traced back to their car setup over the Sprint weekend.

 

Ferrari changed their car’s suspension at Suzuka to avoid a similar fate, having identified a part on their floor which was underperforming.

 

It meant Hamilton and Charles Leclerc could not challenge McLaren or eventual winner Max Verstappen, while the Briton only managed to overtake Isack Hadjar for P7.

 

Hamilton could be heard frustrated over team radio with engineer Riccardo Adami, which Peter Windsor believes is something he would not do in the earlier stages of his career when speaking on the Cameron CC podcast.

 

 

Peter Windsor thinks Lewis Hamilton’s ‘cry of frustration’ against Kimi Antonelli

Hamilton reached 40 years old in January making him the second oldest driver on the grid behind Fernando Alonso. If he wins an eighth world title, Hamilton will be the first driver since Jack Brabham to achieve the feat.

 

Although Hamilton has not been fussed about getting older impacting his driving, Windsor believes we saw signs of his age and added frustration when speaking to his engineer during the race in Japan.

 

 

“Lewis is 40 years old and I think because of that he just thinks about everything more. I think he’s impervious to what the press say, but I do think he thinks about things more as he gets older. If you’re 21 you just do it on gut feeling,” said Windsor.

 

 

“That’s the difference now, he’s at an age where he’s thinking more and about why Kimi Antonelli is getting away from him and why he’s on hard tyres.

 

“That to me was a real cry of frustration because even having got the information that he wanted, it didn’t help him anyway.”

 

Lewis Hamilton wants Ferrari to improve car after disappointing start to the season

Ferrari’s start to the year has been messy with the double disqualification in China, strategy mistake in Australia, and difficult weekend in Japan.

 

Hamilton is dealing with the same problem he had at Mercedes, with Ferrari having to find the right compromise between ride height and car setup.

 

During the pre-season, Hamilton spent long hours at the Ferrari factory in their simulator and took plenty of time up doing test session in old cars under the Testing of Previous Cars rules.

 

It has enabled him to work with engineers more closely to identify problems, which Ferrari believes can be sorted to put them back on the right track towards challenging rivals. But the start of the season has put them on a significant backfoot for the rest of the year, which could impact their title chances.

 

Lewis Hamilton’s start to life at Ferrari has been far from ideal. The Scuderia have been struggling for race pace so far in 2025

 

The seven-time world champion’s debut for Ferrari in Melbourne ended on a whimper with P10. He had been leading at one point in the tricky conditions, but the team’s gamble on dry tyres in the rain did not pay off.

 

At the Chinese Grand Prix, the SF-25 found performance, which guided Hamilton to the Sprint win on Saturday. However, Ferrari suddenly lost that speed in the race as the Brit and Charles Leclerc came home P5 and P6.

 

That was until the duo were disqualified – Leclerc for being underweight and Hamilton for excessive plank wear. This proved to be another gut punch, leaving the latter on just nine points from his first two races at Ferrari.

 

Position Drivers’ Championship Points

1

Lando Norris

44

2

Max Verstappen

36

3

George Russell

35

4

Oscar Piastri

34

5

Andrea Kimi Antonelli

22

6

Alexander Albon

16

7

 

 

After such a disappointing start, much noise has been made about whether the 40-year-old is already disillusioned with Ferrari. Ted Kravitz noticed Hamilton has backtracked his expectations at the Japanese Grand Prix by saying he did not expect to win from the start.

 

But at the start of the season, Hamilton had said the team had what they needed to fight for the championship. It is clear Ferrari need to act fast to get the edge over their rivals – they have started during the Japanese Grand Prix weekend.

 

 

Ferrari called Lewis Hamilton to an emergency meeting in Maranello before the Japanese Grand Prix

Ferrari engineers tried to lift Hamilton’s spirits in his garage at Suzuka by giving him a teddy of his pet dog Rsocoe. This came before the team had called him to an emergency meeting in Maranello to get their problems ‘figured out.’

 

 

Kravitz noted on Sky Sports F1 before FP1 that the team admitted they got it wrong with Hamilton’s plank weat disqualification in China, but only by a ‘tiny amount.’

 

“The Leclerc underweight disqualification was quite a simple thing. Ferrari say there were quite a few things that contributed to that but they know what that was,” he said.

 

“But clearly the Lewis Hamilton plank wear and it was only by half a millimetre, was just outside the tolerance. Of course, Lewis wants the most downforce from this Ferrari, you get the most downforce by running the car as low as possible to the ground.

 

“And I spoke to Ferrari this morning, they admit they got that wrong but it wasn’t by much. We’re talking tiny details here and by a tiny amount, the car was outside the regulations.

 

“Ferrari did call a meeting, called Lewis Hamilton back from his activities in the far east in China and Japan, back to Maranello just for a day on Tuesday to get it all figured out and then Lewis came back out here to Japan, to acclimatise to the time difference.”

 

Lewis Hamilton is determined to make his stint at Ferrari a success

Alice Powell fears Ferrari’s double disqualification is ‘really damaging’ to their constructors’ title chances. The team are level on points with Williams after two races, who have already equalled their 2024 points tally.

 

It is clear Ferrari have work to do if they want to challenge the likes of McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull for the title – their star driver has been putting considerable effort in behind the scenes with long hours at the factory.

 

Hamilton has also been learning Italian to immerse himself fully in the Ferrari culture. He is determined to make his stint in Maranello a success – it could be his last chance to win an eighth title.

 

Hamilton is contracted until 2026, with an option of a further year. However, 2025 could be his best opportunity to claim the championship before the new technical regulations come into effect next season.