Lewis Hamilton is, without a shadow of a doubt, the single most decorated, most accomplished F1 driver to ever grace the sport. Smashing pretty much every record that counts, Hamilton has 105 race wins, 104 pole positions, and 202 podium finishes to his name.
Despite his numerous accolades, Lewis has had, to say the very least, quite a poor start to the 2025 season. Nine races down and Hamilton is 6th in championship, a little ways off from his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. After 6 Drivers’ Championships and 84 race wins with Mercedes, Hamilton announced his move to Ferrari before the 2024 season had even started, calling an end to F1’s most successful partnership. Having gone win-less in 2022 and 2023, Hamilton was victorious twice in 2024, picking up wins in the Japanese and British Grand Prix.
It is every driver’s dream, or at least it was, to race for the prancing horse. Hamilton is no exception.
The oldest team on the grid, Ferrari’s roots are firmly planted in F1. But what started as a hope-filled switch has quickly turned into a nightmare, with Hamilton fighting for his life each and every race.
The highlight of his debut season with Ferrari is his sprint race win in China. After a disappointing 10th in Melbourne, Hamilton was looking to redeem himself as quickly as possible. And he did, at least for a little while, picking up his and Ferrari’s first sprint race win.
But when comes to the big race, Hamilton struggles, finishing well off from where he should be. In Monaco, Hamilton came home 48 seconds behind the race leaders, leaving everyone scratching their heads. Finishing fourth just does not cut it for the greatest of all time.
And the issue is always the same: the setup of his SF-25. No matter how many tweaks he makes, he just cannot find a balance he likes. Ferrari’s 2025 package, as we have seen from Charles Leclerc’s numerous podium finishes, is capable of so much more. And Hamilton is painfully aware of this too.
Hamilton’s woes started all the way back in Melbourne. Not one to get caught up in all the hype, he kept a level head going into the season opener, trying to manage his and everyone else’s expectations. Still melding his championship-winning style to the new car, Hamilton qualified a respectable 8th. In his post-qualifying interview with Liberty Media, he said he did not expect to be as far off the pace but was happy to be so close to Charles in his first outing with the team. Given the limited testing time modern F1 drivers receive, Hamilton’s qualifying performance was justifiable: for now, at least.
But he did not fare much better in the race, unfortunately. Changing conditions only made Hamilton’s baptism of fire that more difficult. A measly point on debut was not what he, or his diehard fans, were hoping for. Hamilton put his less than stellar debut down to being ill-prepared. Figuring out how to drive his new car proved too difficult for the 7-time champ.
But with the next race in China just a week later, Hamilton did not have to wait long for another crack.
And boy did he hit the ground running, putting his Ferrari on pole for Saturday’s sprint race. Grinning from ear to ear, he could not help but smile.
“I’m a bit gobsmacked, I’m a bit taken aback by it,” he told Liberty Media.
“I didn’t know when we would get to this position.”
With the newly repaved track surface, Hamilton’s first sprint race win was in the bag.
But set-up changes ahead of qualifying sapped whatever pace he had earlier on in the day, seeing him line up just 5th. He did qualify ahead of Leclerc at least, who could only manage 6th.
A lack of grip and balance was to blame for the comparatively poor qualifying performance, said Hamilton, with wind also making the car harder to control.
But their weekend would take a turn for the worst come race day. Both Ferraris would collide on the opening lap going into turn one, with Leclerc coming off worse. Despite losing 30 pounds of downforce however, Leclerc would actually finish the race in 5th, in front Hamilton. Lack of pace, balance issues, and an all-around “terrible car” were to blame once again for his 6th place finish.
Even after all that, the racing gods still were not done dishing out their punishment just yet. In a cruel twist, not one, but both Ferrari would be disqualified from the race, costing them precious Drivers and Constructors points. After getting a good chunk of front wing knocked off at turn one, Leclerc’s SF-25 came to the stewards underweight, putting a damper on his heroic drive. An aggressive, pace seeking set up led excessive plank wear on Hamilton’s Ferrari, and ultimately, his disqualification.
Hamilton wanted to wipe the slate clean ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, looking optimistically at his chances this time around. Despite having 359 starts in F1, Hamilton said every race with Ferrari was a new experience. Hamilton managed to do worse than China, qualifying 8th while Charles secured 4th. Once again, Hamilton was not where he wanted to be. Coming home in 7th, he recovered somewhat during the race. Leclerc just could not compete with the pace of Max Verstappen and the two McLaren’s up front, Finishing just behind the leaders in 4th. Spending most of the race in no man’s land, Hamilton said it was a “lonely one.”
Ferrari brought a couple of upgrades ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix, ones that would hopefully get on top of Hamilton’s rear-end instability. Despite his woeful results and consistent complaints, Hamilton said were not a “huge amount” of issues with his SF-25. His ego would take another catastrophic blow in qualifying. While Leclerc slotted his car into second place, Hamilton could only pull of 10th. With every ounce of enthusiasm sapped out of him, Hamilton said the car was a lot better than China. He apologised to his team during his post-qualifying interview, saying how sorry he was for not getting the job done. Lining up 9th, Hamilton came home in 5th, one place behind Leclerc. But Hamilton still was not impressed with his best result of the season so far, letting everyone know just how hard the car was to drive, again. Four races in and Hamilton was still working hard to adapt his driving style. But after an all-round positive Grand Prix, Hamilton knew what to look for next time out in Saudi Arabia.
But 7th certainly was not what he was hoping for. Dejected, Hamilton said qualifying was, as always, “challenging” for him. This comes, mind you, from the lips of someone with more pole positions than any other driver in the sport’s history. How can the greatest of all time be this downtrodden, this dejected? While Leclerc picked up Ferrari’s first podium of the season in third, Hamilton finished the race where he started in 7th. Perplexed by his disappointing results, Hamilton says he has no idea why he is not getting the same results as Leclerc. Fighting the car in and out of every corner, Hamilton said he lacked grip and balance. “Nothing I did worked,” he said.
One Sky Sport presenter said what no other F1 commentator has had the guts to say about Hamilton and his constant complaints after the Grand Prix. Five races into the season, former F1 driver Martin Brundle said that Hamilton had had ample time to adapt to the car, going so far as to say that he is not going the right way with his set up.
Miami would follow the same trend as weekends before. Hamilton would get extremely lucky during the sprint race, finishing in third. But when it came time for the all-important qualifying season, Hamilton and his Ferrari went backwards. Grip and balance issues were to blame once again for his shock Q2 exit. Lining up 12th on the grid, Hamilton would up during the race, securing precious Constructors’ points in 8th.
The next race would be in Imola, Ferrari country. If there was one race Hamilton wanted to do well at, it was this one. Slowly getting more accustomed to the car, 6 races into the season, Hamilton said he understands what the car needs more of. But for the second week in a row, Hamilton would fall short in Q2, knocked out along with his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. Like with most other qualifying sessions before it, Hamilton said his SF-25 was capable of a better result. Lining up all the way down in 12th, Hamilton would climb all the way up to finish 4th, pulling off a spectacular redemption drive. Agonisingly close to his first podium of the season, Hamilton said it was great to have such a strong race.
Monaco, like it has been since the 1990s, was a complete write off. The grid was set and done during Saturday’s qualifying session. Hamilton qualified and finished the historic race in 4th, over half a minute behind the leaders. Leclerc claimed yet another podium finish, coming home in second place.
The Spanish Grand Prix would be another disappointing race for Hamilton. Despite out-qualifying Leclerc for the second week in a row in 5th, Hamilton would finish behind his teammate once again in Spain. And not only that, but Kick Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg would beat him to the line in embarrassing fashion, finishing 6th on well-worn softs.
Hamilton was not happy with the setup of his Ferrari from the Spanish Grand Prix, outright saying how bad it was during his Thursday wrap-up interview with Liberty Media. Hamilton said that both Ferraris were hindered by race-long issues, adding that it was the worst feeling car he had ever driven.
Despite his less than stellar performance this season so far, Hamilton is, at the very least, consistent when it comes to qualifying. Hamilton would beat Leclerc to the punch once again, 5th while his teammate could only manage 8th.
But wouldn’t you know it, Leclerc would crawl his way up the field by race’s end, finishing ahead of Hamilton in 5th. And to put even more salt on his already aggravated wound, Andrea Kimi Antonelli – Lewis’s rookie replacement at Mercedes – snagged his first podium finish in the Canadian Grand Prix at just 18 years old.
Managing brake failure, Hamilton said he had to nurse the car for much of the race. But, considering how serious the issue was, Hamilton said he was grateful to get points.
The Hamilton situation is a tricky one. On the one hand, this is his first season driving Ferrari. Having spent the past 11 seasons driving for one team, I am sure it is hard to kick old habits and forge new ones with another outfit. After Nico Rosberg left in 2016, Hamilton virtually had Mercedes all to himself. He could meld and mould each car to his liking, making sure they fit his unique driving style. Now, he is in a team where he is not the golden child. Sure, Hamilton is a 7-time champion with more race wins than any other driver ever, but Charles Leclerc is Ferrari’s golden boy. Like with Red Bull and Max Verstappen, Ferrari will always favour their number one driver.
Or maybe, just maybe, Lewis Hamilton’s time in F1 has drawn to a tragic close.
18 years and God knows how many records and accolades later, there is not much left for Hamilton to accomplish. He has done it all and seen it all. Since 2021, Hamilton’s performance has taken a considerable nosedive. From dominating race after race to fighting for points, the turnaround was quite a shocking one. He was even beaten twice in the standings by his considerably less experienced teammate at Mercedes, George Russel. Only two other drivers can say they have beaten Hamilton in equal machinery: Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg. And it is looking like Charles Leclerc will also join that exclusive club come season’s end. That is, of course, if Hamilton does not knuckle down and drive like we all know he can. But only time will tell.
