Lewis Hamilton as soon as once more dominated Ferrari-related headlines on Wednesday, however this time, it was for causes he would have most popular to keep away from.
The seven-time world champion suffered a crash at Flip 12 of the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona whereas participating in a Testing of Earlier Automobiles (TPC) session. Driving Ferrari’s SF-23, Hamilton was scheduled to finish the morning session earlier than handing the automobile over to his new teammate, Charles Leclerc. Nevertheless, as a result of TPC rules, each drivers couldn’t run concurrently.
Hamilton’s accident compelled Ferrari to cancel Leclerc’s session completely, because the harm sustained meant the automobile couldn’t be repaired in time. Regardless of the setback, Charles Leclerc confirmed little frustration, realizing he would have additional alternatives to conduct comparable assessments later within the yr or in the course of the winter break.
The Maranello-based group has been working extensively to combine Hamilton into their system, guaranteeing he adapts to their operations and automobile traits as easily as potential. Regardless of the crash, the British driver reportedly left a powerful impression on Ferrari’s engineers in Barcelona. Notably, he has already demonstrated proficiency in dealing with the group’s clutch launch for race begins—an space the place his predecessor, Carlos Sainz, had encountered difficulties—in addition to in adjusting to Ferrari’s braking system.
Juan Pablo Montoya on Why Hamilton’s Ferrari Crash Was Important
Whereas some speculated that Lewis Hamilton’s crash may have been the results of a bump within the circuit quite than driver error, the Briton will undoubtedly wish to iron out any points effectively earlier than the season kicks off in March.
Naturally, the incident attracted important consideration. Historical past suggests Hamilton’s testing crashes don’t essentially spell bother—he beforehand suffered comparable mishaps with McLaren at Valencia in 2007 and with Mercedes at Jerez in 2013, solely to win the world title with each groups the next yr.
Damon Hill jokingly dubbed Hamilton a “crashing bore,” suggesting that if the sample holds, he might be on monitor to say the 2026 championship with Ferrari. Nevertheless, former Williams and McLaren driver Juan Pablo Montoya took a unique stance.
Talking on the AS Colombia YouTube channel, Juan Pablo Montoya defined why the crash was a “huge deal.” He highlighted that the incident occurred at excessive velocity in a nook the place the chance of creating contact with the boundaries was comparatively low, making Hamilton’s off-track tour extra notable than it’d initially appear.
Montoya said that Hamilton’s crash didn’t trouble him, because it was a routine take a look at. He defined that the nook in query might be difficult if a driver lacked confidence within the automobile, because it was a quick flip with a number of potholes that would simply catch somebody off guard. He famous that dropping management in such a state of affairs was not frequent however may occur when house was restricted.
Montoya additional emphasised that the importance of the accident lay within the sheer velocity of Formulation 1 vehicles. He identified that when a mistake was made and a driver went off monitor, the chance of avoiding contact with something was extraordinarily low.
Lewis Hamilton might face the lack of a key privilege following his crash with Ferrari in Barcelona.
Though Ferrari downplayed the incident, describing the crash as a minor difficulty and reassuring that Hamilton was “completely high quality,” the accident might have implications for the 40-year-old’s testing alternatives later within the season.
The group determined to not regulate their testing schedule in Barcelona. In consequence, each Hamilton and Leclerc departed the circuit, leaving Antonio Giovinazzi and Dino Beganovic to take over the SF-23 on Thursday.
Wanting forward, Ferrari will conduct a Pirelli tyre take a look at this week on the identical circuit, utilizing the 2026-spec rubber. Throughout this session, the British driver is predicted to obtain a setup that’s thought-about “unprecedented,” as it’s going to simulate the downforce traits of the 2026 automobile utilizing final yr’s mannequin.
As well as, the Maranello group might select to increase their keep in Barcelona by an additional day to conduct one other Testing of Earlier Automobiles (TPC) session, which may assist them get better priceless monitor time misplaced after Hamilton’s crash.
Nevertheless, this extension would include a big consequence: if Ferrari proceeds with the extra take a look at, Hamilton would have already reached the 1,000km restrict for TPC classes throughout 4 days. This might forestall him from taking part in any additional mid-season assessments. TPC classes are essential for gathering knowledge and pushing automobile growth, as Max Verstappen demonstrated forward of the Spanish Grand Prix on his path to securing a fourth World Championship title.
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