Lewis Hamilton’s private verdict after first Ferrari factory visit has spectacularly backfired this season

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Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton were hoping to make history together in 2025.

Team principal Fred Vasseur started the campaign as the latest man tasked with leading Ferrari to their first championship win in 17 years.

Ferrari won the constructors’ championship that year, 12 months after Kimi Raikkonen delivered their most recent drivers’ title.

Lewis Hamilton currently sits level with Michael Schumacher with seven drivers’ championships, and it would be the perfect ending to his time in Formula 1 to break that record with the sport’s most iconic team.

Thousands of Ferrari fans greeted Hamilton at Fiorano for his first outing, and the team were optimistic that they were the best of the rest behind McLaren after pre-season testing.

What’s followed is months of disappointment tinged with the occasional glimmer of hope for Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc.

Hamilton led muted celebrations after winning the Sprint Race in China, but his disqualification from the Grand Prix the next day has resulted in race after race where Ferrari have no answers for their poor performance.

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

Lewis Hamilton thought Ferrari were ‘ready to win’ a world championship after early factory visits

A report from The Times has shared more details about Hamilton’s feelings towards the team when he first made the switch from Mercedes.

Hamilton had spent three seasons chasing a record eighth title after losing out on the final lap in 2021 to Max Verstappen.

George Russell finished ahead of Hamilton in the championship during their final season as teammates, signalling that it was the right time for a change of scenery for the 40-year-old.

The report suggests that Hamilton believed Ferrari were ‘ready to win’ a championship this season after his early visits to the factory this year.

Hamilton spent countless hours at Maranello learning as much about his new team and their processes as possible.

Unfortunately, it became clear at the Australian Grand Prix when Hamilton and Leclerc qualified seventh and eighth and spent much of the race battling over the final points-paying positions, that they were in trouble.

Hamilton’s difficulties are being compared to Schumacher’s final season at Mercedes, but he’ll hope that next season sees his and his team’s fortunes quickly turn around.

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

Doubts remain over Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton’s chances for the 2026 Formula 1 season

Ferrari will have to decide very soon whether to abandon this year’s car to concentrate on next season’s machine when Formula 1’s regulations receive a major overhaul.

Plenty of teams towards the back of the grid have already made that switch, but Ferrari’s reputation relies on them being constantly competitive, and so making that level of sacrifice isn’t in the team’s DNA.

Hamilton will be aware that 2026 could be his final chance to win a world championship, and Ferrari must be at the front of the pack when the cars take to the track for the first time next year.

However, doubts remain over Ferrari’s 2026 power units, with the new era of Formula 1 predicted to be power unit-dominated.

Alex Brundle is also unsure Hamilton’s driving style will suit next year’s car, but only time will tell whether that’s actually the case.