Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur reveals that his team is indeed considering assigning Lewis Hamilton a new race engineer. The British driver frequently clashed with engineer Riccardo Adami over the team radio in 2025. Although Hamilton attributed this to an adjustment period earlier in the season, Ferrari appears to be considering ending the partnership between the two.
The collaboration between Lewis Hamilton and his race engineer Riccardo Adami came under scrutiny several times during the Brit’s first season with Ferrari. For instance, during the first race of the year, the Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton cut off his newly appointed race engineer. Although the seven-time world champion later in the season described his relationship with Adami as ‘excellent’, Frédéric Vasseur does not rule out that the collaboration between the two might come to an end in 2026.”We are considering all options,” was the response of the team boss when asked by the Italian Corriere della Sera if Adami would remain as Hamilton’s race engineer. “We need to improve our collaboration (between Hamilton and Ferrari). He needs to extract more from the car. All details are important. We need to understand each other better. On the other side of the garage (with Charles Leclerc), we simply know each other better. I also need to better understand what Lewis wants.”
2026
However, 2025 was not only a tough season for Hamilton. Charles Leclerc also failed to secure a victory – the Monegasque did finish on the podium seven times – which meant that Ferrari did not celebrate a single Grand Prix victory during the season. “The message at the end of the year, but I think we have spent so many hours together that we completely agree, is that we all know the season was not good,” Vasseur honestly tells Sky Italy. “We have had time to discuss why.”
Yet, the Frenchman remains hopeful for the next season, when the regulations will change significantly. “The message is that 2026 will be a completely different story. A new chassis, new engine, new battery, new fuel, and new tires. Everything is new.”
