Lewis Hamilton may have pulled off a masterstroke as whispers emerge about Ferrari’s 2026 car

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Lewis Hamilton’s podium drought could reach a record high at the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend. It would be his 13th successive race without a top-three finish, stretching back to the end of his Mercedes stint.

Should he end that barren run, it would doubtless be a morale boost for both driver and team. But it’s unlikely to change the complexion of the season.

Hamilton is already 119 points off the pace in the drivers’ championship, and Ferrari are 191 adrift of McLaren in the constructors’. Race wins will still be a target later in the year, but it’s clear that they will fall short of their ultimate goal.

But Hamilton didn’t just join Ferrari to win in 2025. In fact, the team’s prospects in the next rules cycle should have been a bigger factor in his decision.

Hamilton’s Ferrari deal could run for three years, should both parties activate a 2027 option. He recently urged his critics to wait until he’d left to cast their final judgement.

Ferrari are now in a ‘really good’ position for F1’s new regulations

When Hamilton joined Mercedes in 2013, his first year was solid but rather forgettable. While he won a race in Hungary, he finished fourth in the championship.

But Hamilton suspected that Mercedes would nail the impending switch from V8s to V6s hybrids. And it proved to be one of the great masterstrokes in F1 history as he won six world championships in seven seasons.

Hamilton has been urging Ferrari to focus on 2026, accepting that they have no chance of silverware this season. He’s in the final portion of his career, so he needs the Scuderia to be immediately competitive following the rule reset.

And he’s received some good news on that front. According to Formula Uno Analisi Tecnica, the ‘details [that] have come to light’ in recent weeks suggest that Ferrari are ‘doing a really good job’ with their 2026 car.

The team may be reaping the rewards of listening to Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton has made a major realisation about Ferrari

While there’s plenty of excitement about what Mercedes could produce, Ferrari’s 2026 engine is an unknown. But they do have the advantage of vast experience compared to newcomers like Audi and Red Bull Powertrains.

If Ferrari do roll out a contending car, then there are two major questions to answer. The first is whether they can operate like champions.

To that end, Hamilton has realised that Ferrari need to be rebuilt. He thinks their working methods are unsuitable for their objectives.

But the second question is whether he himself is still at the level to win a title. Charles Leclerc has comprehensively outperformed the 40-year-old this season, but there are signs that he comes alive when victories are in sight.