Some of the charming storylines of the 2025 Formulation 1 season is Lewis Hamilton’s transfer to Ferrari, because the seven-time world champion embarks on a quest to safe his eighth title with the long-lasting Maranello crew. This marks a big chapter in his illustrious profession, with Hamilton doubtlessly turning into the primary driver in F1 historical past since Jack Brabham to say a championship on the age of 40. As he continues to construct upon his outstanding legacy, Hamilton’s transition to Ferrari is ready to be a serious point of interest of the upcoming season.
To formally start their partnership, Ferrari will host a non-public take a look at for Hamilton in late January, simply after his departure from Mercedes on the finish of December. This may mark a big milestone, because it represents the primary time Hamilton has joined a crew outdoors the UK all through his complete F1 profession. This distinctive shift comes with its personal set of challenges, together with the language barrier. Nevertheless, whereas Hamilton just isn’t enterprise Italian classes like his predecessor, Sebastian Vettel, there may be one technique he’s adopting to assist ease communication together with his new crew.
When Sebastian Vettel joined the Maranello crew again in 2015, he acknowledged the significance of efficient communication and thus enrolled in Italian classes to foster a greater relationship together with his engineers and crew members. This proactive strategy allowed him to beat any linguistic hurdles and helped him bond with the crew extra seamlessly. Lewis Hamilton, however, just isn’t following the identical route of language classes however is as an alternative specializing in a distinct methodology to bridge the communication hole together with his Ferrari engineers. As revealed by journalist Ben Hunt on the JA on F1 podcast, Lewis Hamilton has discovered an alternate strategy that he believes can be simply as efficient in constructing rapport with the crew, permitting him to give attention to the duty at hand.
Ben Hunt defined that the British driver is making an effort to study, although he isn’t taking any formal lessons. As an alternative, he can be specializing in studying phrases.
Lewis Hamilton is ready to collaborate with Riccardo Adami, a extremely skilled engineer, as his race engineer at Ferrari, marking the tip of his longstanding partnership with Peter Bonnington at Mercedes, which spanned over a decade. This transformation can be vital for Lewis Hamilton, as will probably be the primary time in his F1 profession that he’ll work with a race engineer whose first language just isn’t English. Regardless of the potential language barrier, Adami brings a wealth of expertise to the desk, having labored with notable drivers resembling Sebastian Vettel and, extra lately, Carlos Sainz.
As Hamilton embarks on this new chapter with Ferrari, Anthony Davidson expressed optimism that the transfer might reignite the “magic” for Lewis Hamilton, particularly after his visibly disheartened efficiency in the course of the latter a part of his ultimate races with Mercedes. The hope is that the recent setting and new dynamic inside the Ferrari crew will present Hamilton with the motivation and vitality wanted to regain his aggressive edge.
Waiting for the 2025 season, Hamilton can be keen to hold ahead the progress Ferrari made with their 2024 automobile. The crew achieved some promising breakthroughs in direction of the tip of the season, and Hamilton can be hopeful that these enhancements could be constructed upon within the upcoming yr. With 2025 being the ultimate yr earlier than the most important rule adjustments in 2026, this may very well be a pivotal season for Hamilton as he goals to benefit from the present rules and additional solidify his legacy within the sport.