Lewis Hamilton admits he's close to demanding Ferrari change as F1 woes continue
Lewis Hamilton endured another difficult race at the Spanish Grand Prix last weekend despite a better qualifying effort, as his difficulties since joining Ferrari continue
Lewis Hamilton admitted he could soon ask Ferrari to focus fully on their preparations for the 2026 season. Such a shift would be seen as giving up on what has so far been a difficult debut campaign for the seven-time Formula 1 champion with his new team.
Despite all the hype around one of the most high-profile driver moves in F1 history, there has been little for Hamilton to write home about so far in 2025. Other than one victory and a podium, both in Sprint races, his results have been underwhelming.
Part of that has been put down to his difficulties adapting to his new surroundings, but it is clear that Ferrari as a team have had a poor start. Last year they ran McLaren close for the constructors' title but, nine rounds into the current season, they are already 197 points adrift of the leaders.
They also have not won any of the nine Grands Prix held so far, though Charles Leclerc has managed three podium finishes. The Monegasque is fifth in the drivers' standings with 94 points, one place and 23 points ahead of Hamilton.
The Brit's qualifying had been a key issue but the last two races have been encouraging in that regard. He was particularly happy last Saturday night in Barcelona having qualified fifth for the Spanish Grand Prix, two places ahead of his team-mate.
But while Leclerc came roaring through on the Sunday, rising to the podium positions, Hamilton struggled for pace. He limped to finish sixth after Max Verstappen's late penalty, having been overtaken by the Sauber of Nico Hulkenberg late on, and said it was the "worst race I've experienced".
He will hope to have a more competitive Ferrari to drive next time out at the Canadian Grand Prix, but did not sound too confident when asked if he felt that might be the case. "I don't know, if I'm honest," Hamilton replied.
And he suggested focusing on their 2026 plans might be a better use of Ferrari's resources, adding: "I don't know what upgrades we have coming. We haven't had an upgrade for quite some time. We'll keep pushing with what we have but, before too soon, I'll be just saying focus on next year.
"So building foundations this year, learning about the tools in terms of structure, in terms of our processes, nailing those so when we arrive next year we'll be with the car that we really want." In contrast, though Leclerc knows it will be "very tough" to fight against the dominant McLarens, he vowed: "I'll give everything until the end.
"I hope this weekend helps us to do a step in the right direction and then, hopefully with new parts as soon as possible, we can then take the lead in terms of performance on track at least. That will help us to hope for better, but we cannot afford to lose too many races."
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