Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton has formally switched from Mercedes’ silver to Scuderia Ferrari’s iconic crimson, along with his contract with the Italian facet taking impact at first of the brand new 12 months.
The British driver signed a profitable £39m-per-year cope with Ferrari in February, effectively forward of getting into Mercedes’ W15 for his ultimate season with the Silver Arrows in 2024.
Lewis Hamilton’s Components 1 profession has been completely tied to Mercedes, following his debut with McLaren in 2007. Now, in 2025, he embarks on a brand new chapter with Ferrari, all whereas aiming to safe his eighth world championship title.
Lewis Hamilton is already starting to really feel at residence in his new environment. Forward of his transfer, he greeted his new Ferrari mechanics in Italian throughout the Abu Dhabi race weekend, signaling his enthusiasm for the change. Ferrari has organized a check for Hamilton on the Fiorano Circuit later this month, although different dates are set in February in case poor climate prevents the January check from happening.
Lewis Hamilton Aligns with Ayrton Senna’s Aspiration to End Profession at Ferrari
By becoming a member of Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton turns into a part of an unique group of world champions who’ve raced for the legendary crew, together with Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, and Sebastian Vettel.
Lewis Hamilton’s hero, Ayrton Senna, by no means had the prospect to drive for Ferrari, however in keeping with journalist Ralf Bach, the British driver shares the identical aspirations because the Brazilian legend about wanting to finish his profession with Components 1’s most profitable crew.
The Brazilian F1 legend secured three world titles with McLaren in 1988, 1990, and 1991, additionally driving for Lotus and Williams all through his profession. Regardless of this, he at all times dreamt of racing for Ferrari.
Luca di Montezemolo, the previous Ferrari president, revealed that Ayrton Senna had expressed a want to complete his F1 profession with the Maranello crew, and negotiations had been underway earlier than his tragic loss of life on the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Because the seven-time F1 world champion realizes his personal dream of racing for the Italian facet, Ralf Bach believes that had Senna been given the chance, he too would have joined the Scuderia to shut out his profession.
Ralf Bach defined through the F1-insider.com YouTube channel that Hamilton is a extremely engaging determine in a constructive sense, and Ferrari represented a major draw for him. He recommended that Hamilton seemingly shared the identical mindset as his idol, Ayrton Senna, who, had it not been for the tragic accident in Imola, would have seemingly completed his profession at Ferrari. Bach emphasised that this facet performs a major function in Hamilton’s determination. He additionally identified that Hamilton, having solely ever pushed for Mercedes by way of engine suppliers, seemingly felt the necessity for a change later in his profession. In keeping with Bach, if one needs one thing totally different in Components 1, Ferrari is the logical selection. Bach, who has spent over 40 years as an F1 journalist, famous that Hamilton seemingly wished to expertise a brand new problem earlier than the top of his profession.
Can Lewis Hamilton Depart His Mercedes Struggles Behind and Succeed at Ferrari?
Between 2014 and 2020, Lewis Hamilton loved unparalleled success with Mercedes, successful six of his seven drivers’ championships and shattering quite a few data. Nonetheless, the shift to Components 1’s floor impact period proved difficult for the Briton, who struggled to search out consistency in recent times.
At 39, Hamilton managed to safe two victories in 2024, triumphing at Silverstone and Spa. These wins marked his first since 2021 however provided solely a short respite in a season that noticed him end a disappointing seventh within the drivers’ standings—his lowest-ever placement in his F1 profession.
The British driver’s struggles with Mercedes in 2024 have raised doubts about whether or not he can regain his peak type at Ferrari. Critics, together with Flavio Briatore, have questioned Ferrari’s determination to signal Hamilton, with Flavio Briatore stating he “wouldn’t have signed” the seven-time champion, given the crew’s already sturdy lineup with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.
Leclerc, who has been a cornerstone of Ferrari since becoming a member of in 2019, is poised to be a formidable rival for Hamilton. Often called one of many quickest drivers over a single lap, Charles Leclerc’s familiarity with the Scuderia and his distinctive qualifying tempo might problem Lewis Hamilton’s dominance.
Ferrari crew principal Frederic Vasseur has indicated that the crew will enable its drivers to race freely in 2025, creating the potential for an electrifying intra-team battle. With two fiercely aggressive drivers vying for supremacy, Hamilton faces the twin problem of adapting to Ferrari and proving he nonetheless has what it takes to compete on the prime degree.
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