F1 rules will prevent Ferrari doing one thing with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc this month

Lewis Hamilton has started work at Ferrari after visiting the factory in Maranello on Monday.

The seven-time world champion’s life with F1’s most successful team has officially begun after almost a year of waiting. Hamilton’s first duties as a Ferrari driver consisted of greeting the employees at the factory before doing some work in the simulator.

F1 fans noticed Hamilton looked ‘excited’ and ‘joyous’ during his visit – a sharp contrast to how he was feeling at the end of his 12-year stint at Mercedes after enduring his worst finish in the sport in 2024.

The 40-year-old will be hoping his move to Maranello will be the confidence boost he needs after three years of struggle at Mercedes during the ground effect era. Judging by his demeanour on his visit to the factory, Hamilton cannot wait to get started with his new team.

The Brit will need to find his form quickly at Ferrari as he goes up against Charles Leclerc. The Monagasque driver has been well-established with the team’s setup having been with their academy since 2016 and raced in F1 with them since 2019.

As a result, Ferrari are looking to get their new recruit integrated into the team as best as they can before the 2025 season kicks off in Australia in March.

Ferrari will be prevented from running Charles Leclerc at the same time as Lewis Hamilton during his first test

Hamilton is set to have several outings in Ferrari machinery before pre-season testing in Bahrain at the end of February. He could complete a test at Barcelona in the 2025 car and could also take part in a Pirelli tyre test ahead of the new set of regulations coming to the sport in 2026.

Hamilton is set for his first Ferrari test this week at the team’s Fiorano circuit in either the 2022 or 2023 car as part of the TPC regulations (Testing of Previous Cars).

Fans have already expressed an interest in coming to watch the session, with the Mayor of Maranello declaring a state of emergency to help regulate the traffic in the small town.

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As Ferrari look to prioritise getting Hamilton up to speed with the team, journalist Scott Mitchell-Malm says it is ‘likely’ Leclerc will also take part in these tests.

However, under the TPC rules, the team are not allowed to run two cars at the same time. This means that if Leclerc is to run alongside Hamilton, they will have to share a car.

“Ferrari is opting to bias its race driver allowance to the start of the year as that will help Hamilton get up to speed as much as possible”, said Mitchell-Malm via The Race YouTube Channel.

“Leclerc is likely to take part in the test as well, although the rules prevent Ferrari running two cars at the same time, so if he joins Hamilton, they’ll be sharing a car”.

Can Lewis Hamilton beat Charles Leclerc at Ferrari in 2025?

The fight between Hamilton and Leclerc will be one of the closest teammate battles in the 2025 season – and the former will be keen to stamp his authority and get the edge over his rival.

Initially, Hamilton will start on the back foot to Leclerc as the Monagasque driver knows Ferrari well. But once he is up to speed and in the right mindset, the Brit could be unstoppable.

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Hamilton has been honest with Fred Vasseur about his qualifying struggles that cost him dearly in 2024. He will need to improve his form on Saturday as Leclerc is one of the fastest drivers over one lap.

The 27-year-old is also no stranger to having a world champion on the other side of the Ferrari garage. Leclerc beat Sebastian Vettel as teammates in 2019 and 2020 after the former joined the team from Sauber.

But Leclerc may find Hamilton’s popularity ‘difficult’ to handle next season as all the attention shifts to the seven-time champion joining Ferrari.