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Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton have plenty of questions to answer going into the 2026 Formula 1 season.
For the first time in his Formula 1 career, Lewis Hamilton failed to score a podium last year, with his move to Ferrari falling short of everyone’s expectations.
Ferrari finished fourth in the constructors’ championship, despite Charles Leclerc securing seven top-three results.
One of the things that many fans have noticed since Hamilton’s move from Mercedes is his communication with race engineer Riccardo Adami.
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Hamilton’s radio messages with Adami in Abu Dhabi summed up a year where both parties have struggled to get the best out of each other.
Karun Chandhok has access to every driver’s radio at each race that many fans won’t hear on their broadcasts.
He’s explained what has been going wrong for Hamilton and Ferrari, and compared them to the ‘gold standard’ at his previous team, Mercedes.
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Karun Chandhok tells Lewis Hamilton to listen to ‘gold standard’ George Russell radio messages
Chandhok was reflecting on the campaign on the Fast and the Curious Podcast and said: “Up in the commentary box, we have a set-up where I can listen to all the radio of all of the drivers all the time.
“So, with the swearing and all of the rest of it, we have a live feed. Mercedes are the gold standard.
“Honestly, I believe in the way they communicate with the drivers. They’re concise, they’re precise, they give the drivers the right bits of information, and Lewis has gone from that to Ferrari, where there are cultural and language differences, and he’s not been able to make it work.
“You asked me the question about the engineer [Riccardo Adami], I think there’s a wider thing around how they all communicate.
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“But I do think, and maybe they are doing this, but if I were in Lewis’ position, I would go after every race and listen back to how George communicates with Marcus Dudley, for example.
“Just go and say, ‘This is how I’d like you to talk to me.’
“I think it’s about knowing a driver’s personality. Like, GP and Max, for example, GP puts him in place pretty quickly! It’s not polite chat there, but that’s their relationship; they’re like brothers.
“Lewis has got to find his own equation, but I think there are things you can do to fast-track that.”
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Lewis Hamilton told to listen to Max Verstappen as Ferrari radio critique continues
It was always going to be difficult for Hamilton to get up to speed quickly at a new team after more than a decade at Mercedes.
While the majority of Ferrari’s staff speak Italian, both he and Fred Vasseur communicate with the team predominantly in English.
On top of Russell potentially providing some inspiration for the seven-time world champion, Hamilton has also been told to listen to Max Verstappen if he wants to inspire the team.
The changing regulations next season are going to make communication between teams and drivers even more important.
Each manufacturer will want the most detailed feedback possible to know what’s working and what isn’t.
On top of this, the change from using DRS to an override button will require engineers to give their drivers the most up-to-date information possible, something that hasn’t been Ferrari’s strong suit across 2025.
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