Lewis Hamilton’s Struggles at Ferrari Proceed After Disappointing Spanish Grand Prix Efficiency
Lewis Hamilton’s difficulties with Ferrari present no indicators of easing, with every System 1 weekend bringing recent considerations about his tempo and competitiveness. The seven-time world champion endured one other robust outing at the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix, additional highlighting the uphill battle he faces in his new setting at Scuderia Ferrari.
Regardless of qualifying forward of teammate Charles Leclerc on Saturday, Lewis Hamilton might solely handle a seventh-place end on Sunday, trailing even the Sauber of Nico Hülkenberg. Charles Leclerc, in contrast, managed to deliver his Ferrari residence in third place, securing one other podium for the Italian group regardless of a much less favorable beginning place. The distinction of their outcomes solely served to additional underscore Hamilton’s ongoing adaptation struggles with the SF-25 chassis.
From a championship perspective, the consequence had minimal affect for the previous Mercedes man. He stays sixth within the drivers’ standings, 23 factors behind Leclerc and an equal margin forward of Mercedes protégé Kimi Antonelli. With 15 races remaining within the 2025 System 1 season, there’s nonetheless time for a turnaround, however many within the paddock imagine Ferrari—and Lewis Hamilton—might quickly start to shift focus towards the foremost regulatory overhaul coming in 2026.
One notably demoralizing component for Lewis Hamilton got here within the ultimate stint of the Spanish Grand Prix. Leclerc seemed to be coping with a beforehand unencountered problem associated to the Ferrari’s steadiness and tyre put on, one thing Hamilton had flagged earlier within the season. The Monaco native was heard over group radio making feedback about his setup compromise, which echoed Hamilton’s personal long-standing complaints. The Briton had beforehand recommended he intentionally compromised qualifying efficiency on Saturdays to extract higher race tempo on Sundays—an method that seemingly yielded little reward in Spain.
Including to Lewis Hamilton’s frustration was Ferrari’s choice to order him to let Charles Leclerc via throughout the race, a strategic transfer that enabled the Monegasque to chase the rostrum. In line with paddock insiders, the Briton felt this positioned him in a “horrible” state of affairs, one which didn’t replicate the goals he had when he first joined Ferrari. The transition from Mercedes, the place he loved years of dominance, has confirmed far tougher than anticipated.
Hypothesis about Lewis Hamilton’s long-term dedication to Ferrari intensified following his post-race feedback. When requested about his subsequent transfer, the Brit reportedly said that he merely wished to “go residence,” a comment that some interpreted as an indication of psychological and emotional exhaustion. At almost 40 years previous, Hamilton could also be questioning whether or not he has the vitality and time to rebuild Ferrari’s fortunes—or whether or not the mountain he’s trying to climb is just too steep.
Motorsport veteran Juan Pablo Montoya lately weighed in on the state of affairs, suggesting that Hamilton should demand vital structural modifications inside Ferrari if he needs to see fast enhancements. Nonetheless, such modifications—notably swapping race engineers once more—may very well be destabilizing. The previous System 1 driver hinted that specializing in the technical bundle itself may be a extra sensible resolution for the rest of the season.
Lewis Hamilton’s transfer from Mercedes to Ferrari was one of the crucial high-profile transfers in latest F1 historical past, however the choice is more and more being scrutinized. His insecurity within the Ferrari automotive has develop into extra obvious with every passing race. He has overtly acknowledged that the Spanish Grand Prix was his worst efficiency of the 12 months to date and admitted he couldn’t clarify the poor steadiness and protracted rear-end instability that plagued his race. In line with SPEEDWEEK, the seven-time System 1 world champion described the steadiness because the worst he had skilled in 2025.
The state of affairs appears to be weighing closely on each Ferrari drivers. Whereas Lewis Hamilton’s struggles have been extra seen, Charles Leclerc too appeared unusually withdrawn after the race. Stories from Spanish media indicated that each drivers had been troublesome to interview, suggesting that morale throughout the group is below critical stress.
With Ferrari’s winter gamble on a brand new automotive idea now showing to have backfired, the group should regroup and develop a transparent technique for restoration. Their finest hope lies in collaboration—between drivers, engineers, and management—to salvage the rest of 2025 and make sure that the Scuderia enters the 2026 System 1 season with a much more aggressive platform.
Whether or not Lewis Hamilton in the end regrets leaving Mercedes for Ferrari stays to be seen. However as issues stand, the transition has not introduced the success he envisioned, and until main modifications are made quickly, his dream of an eighth world title might stay simply out of attain.
Purchase official Ferrari F1 merchandise!
Let different Scuderia Followers find out about us
