Lewis Hamilton has arrived at Ferrari ready to deploy his talents and experience to elevate their operation to another level in 2025.
The 39-year-old is chasing a record eighth drivers’ championship after a poor end to his dynasty with Mercedes.
He joins a Ferrari team that scored 184 points more and fell just 14 points short of McLaren’s tally in the battle for the constructors’ championship.
It’s up to Hamilton to help them extract a little extra performance from their car and push them to another level alongside the talented Charles Leclerc.
The seven-time champion takes over from Carlos Sainz, who was informed that he would be dropped before the 2024 season had begun.
There are a few issues for the team to address before the first race of the season at the Australian Grand Prix in March, which they have already set about tackling in their pre-season programme.
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari are addressing start issues during Barcelona test
Ferrari have taken their SF-23 car to Barcelona as they ramp up preparations ahead of the start of the season.
Last year, one of Sainz’s weaknesses was race starts, as he lost places on lap one of all grands prix across the season combined (four).
It wasn’t the case for Leclerc, who gained places on average (16) and was 20 places better off than his teammate.
READ MORE: Ferrari just hinted at 2025 F1 livery change in Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc promo
With the field spread tightening, race starts are becoming a key area for teams to perfect and Ferrari are aware of this.
According to the Italian edition of Motorsport.com, the Italian outfit is devoting some of their time with Hamilton and Leclerc during their Barcelona tests to make ‘improvements’ to their race starts.
By refining their clutch processes they could find gains and discover an advantage over their rivals ahead of the new season.
Will Lewis Hamilton struggle against Charles Leclerc at Ferrari in 2025?
Leclerc has hinted that Hamilton could struggle at Ferrari if he fails to rectify his qualifying issues of the last few seasons.
George Russell beat him 19-5 on Saturdays last year and he now faces an even more formidable one-lap talent in 2025.
Ferrari have told Hamilton and Leclerc to earn the number one role within the team, but if the battle is as tight as it is expected to be, there may not be a winner in that contest.
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton’s comments on Charles Leclerc in 2019 are now very interesting after becoming Ferrari teammates
The Monegasque driver is more familiar with the surroundings that he will be operating in this season, which is a major advantage.
But Hamilton has already eclipsed a Leclerc record after his first social media post with Ferrari on Instagram became the most-liked Formula 1-related post in history.
Leave feedback about this