Lewis Hamilton had ‘complaints’ about key Ferrari ally that left him out of his ‘comfort zone’

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Lewis Hamilton has learned during his first season at Ferrari just how difficult the adaptation period is for drivers switching teams.

Looking at the drivers’ championship at the summer break, Lewis Hamilton is the highest-ranked driver who switched teams going into the 2025 F1 season.

He currently sits sixth, but has yet to finish on the podium after 14 attempts, something his replacement, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, achieved at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Antonelli has been embedded at Mercedes for some time, meaning the next-best driver to change teams completely is Nico Hulkenberg at Sauber, marginally ahead of Haas’ new signing Esteban Ocon.

Ferrari insiders fear Hamilton has struggled to adapt to the SF-25, although his teammate Charles Leclerc has made it clear that the car isn’t easy to drive, despite being at the team for seven seasons.

Team principal Fred Vasseur admitted that he and Hamilton both underestimated the amount of time he would need to adapt after his move to the Scuderia.

Ferrari’s car is very different to Mercedes’ machine, even if both cars are suffering from a similar level of inconsistency.

However, it appears as though one component Ferrari use that Mercedes don’t has led to ‘complaints’ from the seven-time world champion.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family

Brembo manager says Lewis Hamilton has had ‘complaints’ about Ferrari’s brakes this season

Brembo customer manager Andrea Algeri took part in an interview with The Race and spoke about Hamilton’s adaptation.

He admitted that it has been a collaboration between the two parties, and explained: “It was very exciting to start to work with Lewis.

“Obviously, we had some complaints from him within our regular communication and so on, and we are working hard to try to put him in a comfort zone in terms of braking.

“We know he was used to a different material first, but also a different set-up in terms of general braking of the car, that are not only the brakes themselves, but also engine braking, energy recovery and so on.

“So we have been pushing a lot from the team, and we are working hard to try to solve the situation and to have the best result from him.

“On top of that, Ferrari is obviously pushing to be in front, and as usual, is one of the teams that gave us the right pressure to go ahead. We are happy to do it. It’s challenging.

“Obviously, I’m not hiding myself. It’s challenging because it’s really an important job that we are doing, but it is also the way we get to improve our product.”

READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

Lewis Hamilton has had difficulties with Ferrari’s braking since Mercedes move

The margins are so fine this season that any difficulties Hamilton has with the car are going to be costly.

Hamilton’s average qualifying position is nearly three places worse off than Leclerc at this stage of the campaign (8.00 vs 5.14).

It shows a lack of confidence when pushing the car to its limits, and Hamilton has admitted struggling with his brakes at times this year.

Brembo’s brakes are very different to the Carbon Industrie pads he’s used to, which used to complement his hard braking style.

Sam Bird has noticed Hamilton’s trail braking habit, and given how long he’s been racing in Formula 1, adapting to any fundamental changes in driving style now is going to be next to impossible.

Ferrari will hope that Hamilton and Brembo can work out a way to help give Hamilton more confidence, especially as F1’s 2026 car may require a completely different braking style altogether.