For Lewis Hamilton, 2025 is definitively behind him. The Brit endured a disappointing first season as a Ferrari driver, failing to score a single podium. While Formula 1 heads into an intriguing period with a completely new rule set for 2026, the SF-26 – the successor to the SF-25 that Hamilton struggled with – already feels markedly better: “I feel more connected to this car”.
Lewis Hamilton is about to begin his second season as a Ferrari driver. His first campaign, however, was not one to write home about. Aside from success in the sprint races, the seven-time world champion never once reached the podium and was already out in Q2 of qualifying in the final four Grands Prix of the year.
According to the Brit, that’s all in the past. “I always try to start a season with confidence,” Hamilton told the press in Bahrain. “But of course you face all sorts of different challenges along the way. I’ve clearly been through a lot, but for me the whole of last year is behind me. I’ve spent a lot of time this winter rebuilding myself, reorienting, and really getting my body and mind into much better shape.”
‘More connected to the SF-26’
With a completely new rule package for both chassis and power unit for 2026, the Ferrari car is naturally very different this year from the SF-25. Hamilton said several times during last season that he couldn’t get to grips with the car, and so — despite the wholly new driving style the 2026 rules demand — he already feels more at home in the successor, the SF-26.
“It’s an exciting time with this new generation of cars because everything is brand-new,” the world champion continues. “We’re all gradually working out how it behaves, and whereas last year we were stuck with a car I ultimately inherited, this is a car I’ve been able to help develop on the simulator over the past ten months, so there’s a bit of my DNA in it. I feel more connected to this car.”
