Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton says adapting to life at Ferrari has been a demanding process and could take several months, as he prepares for this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.
The 40-year-old Briton, who joined Ferrari for the 2025 season after 12 years with Mercedes, has so far endured a tough start with the Italian team. Hamilton managed a sprint race victory in China, but in full Grand Prix he has yet to finish higher than fifth place amid ongoing struggles to find comfort with the Ferrari car.
Hamilton acknowledged that switching teams and machinery has presented a steep learning curve. “Many things, lots of different things – there’s not one in particular [holding me back],” he said of the adaptation process, comparing it to the early difficulties he experienced when he first moved from McLaren to Mercedes in 2013. The Ferrari SF-25 challenger behaves very differently to what Hamilton was used to, even requiring him to adjust his driving style and techniques like engine braking after years in Mercedes machinery. He even quipped that he might need “a brain transplant” to fully get his head around the new car – a tongue-in-cheek remark underlining how foreign the Ferrari feels after over a decade in his previous team. “I’m definitely working hard to adjust to this,” Hamilton said, emphasising that he and his engineers are diligently trying to speed up his acclimatisation.
The move to Ferrari has so far not yielded the immediate success some fans anticipated. Aside from the morale boost of winning the Shanghai sprint, Hamilton’s race results have been relatively modest. He finished fifth in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix and seventh in subsequent races in Japan and Saudi Arabia. A disqualification from the Chinese Grand Prix (Round 2) due to a technical infringement further set back his points tally. By contrast, his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc has extracted stronger performances from the same car, including a standout result in the previous round in Jeddah, highlighting the gap Hamilton is striving to close. Hamilton admitted that at this stage, he still doesn’t feel able to drive the Ferrari on instinct alone and is often consciously working to adapt his style each lap.
The relatively slow start has inevitably drawn intense scrutiny. Ferrari is a team that faces enormous pressure to deliver results, and Hamilton’s high-profile arrival has only added to expectations. Some observers have been quick to criticise the British driver’s performance. Notably, former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher suggested Hamilton should even consider retirement by mid-season if results don’t improve. Others have pointed out Hamilton’s difficulty matching Leclerc’s pace as evidence of the challenge he faces. However, Ferrari insiders and experienced paddock figures have urged patience – even Hamilton’s predecessor at Ferrari, Carlos Sainz, said he was “not surprised” to see the initial struggles, noting that integrating into a new team can take at least six months.
Hamilton’s response to criticism
Hamilton has responded to the media criticism and pundit commentary by maintaining a determined focus on his learning process. He insists he tunes out the “noise” from outsiders and remains confident in his abilities, despite the rough start. “I forget about it straight away, I just don’t really think about it,” Hamilton said when asked how he deals with critics’ opinions. “I try not to focus on opinions of people that have no insight into what is actually going on… I just keep my head down and continue to enjoy the work I do with the people I work with”. The veteran driver stressed that those casting doubt from the outside – many of whom, he pointedly noted, have “never been in my position” – do not affect his mindset.
Having faced intense scrutiny throughout his career, Hamilton is no stranger to public pressure. He acknowledged that racing for Ferrari magnifies that spotlight even further, given the team’s fame and passionate fan base. “It’s to be expected – Ferrari is the greatest team in F1 history… more stories are written about it and people have opinions,” he said, recognising the heightened attention that comes with donning the famous red colours. Hamilton accepts that the journey was never going to be smooth from the start, and he remains focused on internal progress rather than outside commentary.
Ferrari’s recent history and Hamilton’s outlook
Hamilton’s move to Maranello came with the mutual hope of restoring Ferrari to championship glory. The Scuderia is Formula 1’s most storied team, yet it has endured a lengthy title drought – Ferrari has not won a driver’s world championship since 2007, and their last constructors’ title came in 2008. In recent years, Ferrari often showed flashes of competitiveness but fell short of clinching the top honours, prompting management changes and now the high-profile signing of Hamilton to partner Leclerc. Hamilton, for his part, tempered expectations from the outset, cautioning that transforming Ferrari’s fortunes would be a complex task requiring. “You can’t work with a team and change things overnight,” he observed, urging patience even before turning a wheel for his new team.
Despite the early challenges, the Briton maintains optimism about the project. Hamilton has drawn parallels to his first season at Mercedes in 2013, when it took time to gel with new engineers and systems before eventually achieving dominant success in subsequent years. He and Ferrari team boss Frédéric Vasseur have adopted a measured, long-term approach, confident that improvements will come with development and continued teamwork. Hamilton says he is “working as hard as we can to shorten” the learning period, but admits it’s possible the adjustment could take longer than hoped.
As the F1 circus arrives in Miami, Hamilton’s immediate expectations remain realistic. Ferrari are not bringing major upgrades for this weekend, and Hamilton concedes it’s unclear how much they can achieve at a track where rivals may hold an advantage. “We’ll do the best we can… obviously Charles showed what the car can do in a race, so the goal is to try to replicate that,” he said of the team’s prospects in Florida. In the bigger picture, Hamilton is determined to ride out the current “rollercoaster” phase with Ferrari. The reigning champion of the modern era remains committed to unlocking the performance of his Ferrari and, ultimately, to adding new chapters to the team’s illustrious history.
