Lewis Hamilton hopes that the next generation of cars will be significantly better than the current ground-effect vehicles. The seven-time world champion has only claimed two victories since the introduction of these controversial cars, compared to the 81 wins he achieved during the previous regulation cycle. Hamilton is even ‘praying’ for more success from the 2026 season onwards, when the new regulations come into effect.
Lewis Hamilton has crossed the finish line first 105 times in his Formula 1 career, but only two of these victories came after 2021. In 2022 – the year following the title battle between Hamilton and Max Verstappen – a new regulation cycle began, marking the era of the current generation of ground-effect cars. Next season, Formula 1 will bid farewell to these cars, and another new set of regulations will come into effect. Much to Hamilton’s relief, who already declared in Abu Dhabi: “There is nothing about this current generation of cars that I will miss.”
‘Praying that the next generation of cars won’t be worse’
The seven-time world champion is primarily hoping to turn the tide after a season without podium finishes at Ferrari. “So far, it’s very interesting,” the British star says when asked about his approach to the upcoming regulation changes. This is certainly not the first time that Formula 1 has introduced a new set of regulations for Hamilton.
“2014 was incredibly exciting,” Hamilton reflects on previous rule changes. “Partly because I was in a new team (Mercedes) and I could see the fantastic work that had been done a few years earlier, especially on the engine. And 2017 was cool because it was a bigger, wider car. It just looked tougher and had more downforce. That was great. This generation (from 2022) was probably the worst, I would say, and I pray that the next one won’t be worse than this one.”
Ferrari’s efforts will certainly not be lacking. The Italian racing team stopped further development of the SF-25 last June to shift focus to its successor. “I was one hundred percent behind that,” Hamilton confirms. “I still am – I think it was the right decision. Especially considering the situation we were in with the car, we weren’t fighting for the championship.”
