Lewis Hamilton can’t escape the lesson that was ‘rammed’ into him as a child and it’s hurting Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton has had a tough start to life at Ferrari. It has arguably been the biggest disappointment of the 2025 season so far.

So much was expected of the seven-time world champion when his move to Maranello was made official in January. While there have been some moments of brilliance, including pole position and the win in the Sprint in China, Hamilton and Ferrari have been largely underwhelming.

A botched strategy call in Melbourne cost the team a potential 1-2 finish, while Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were both disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix – the former for excessive plank wear and the latter for being underweight.

The Brit struggled at Suzuka in P7 and came home to finish fifth in Bahrain – his best finish of the season. While Leclerc recorded Ferrari’s first podium of 2025 at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Hamilton endured his most difficult weekend in red.

The 40-year-old was off the pace all weekend in Jeddah, qualifying in seventh, over half a second behind his teammate. Hamilton’s gap to Leclerc was worse than Oliver Bearman’s on his F1 debut in Saudi Arabia last season.

In the race, the Ferrari driver made no progress as he finished where he started. Finishing over 30 seconds behind Leclerc in third, Hamilton ended a 168-race streak of finishing within half a minute of his teammate.

Lewis Hamilton can’t escape the driving style that was ‘rammed’ into him as a child

The SF-25 appears to be a difficult car to manage and one that is hard to get into the right operating window. But Hamilton is noticeably struggling, with Jeddah being a huge wake-up call.

Ferrari understand it is ‘essential’ Hamilton changes his driving style to improve his woes, but there lies a problem. The Brit is used to an aggressive style, going late on the brakes and having a stable rear end.

According to Giedo van der Garde, this style was ‘rammed’ into him as a child for his generation of cars – the Dutchman raced with Hamilton in 2013. Speaking with RacingNews365, he says the seven-time champion cannot shake his method of driving, which is proving damaging to Ferrari.

“Obviously I know a little bit about how I grew up and to the driving style that has been rammed into us, which is different from the generation of Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Lando Norris,” he said.

“They just drive differently, a bit rounder and can deal with a loose rear end a bit easier. So I think if we go back to that generation from about five or six years ago, he would still be superior. But with the new generation he just struggles more.

“You don’t change your driving style just like that. You can try something here and there, but you still fall back on your base. But if he can get it turned around with a car that is stable at the back, then he can get back into the game. Of course, he’s still really super fast.”

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Lewis Hamilton is refusing to give up at Ferrari

Hamilton sits seventh in the drivers’ championship with 31 points after five races. It has been a slow start for the 40-year-old, but perhaps expected – he has never driven anything besides a Mercedes engine in F1.

Hamilton was despondent in Saudi Arabia as he seemed to lose all hope between qualifying and the race. His lack of pace was alarming, with Leclerc saying Ferrari have lacked grip all season as an explanation for his teammate’s woes.

There is still plenty of time left in 2025 to recover, and the Brit is not looking to waste it. Hamilton put in late hours in Jeddah after the race, highlighting his dedication to the team and his drive to succeed with Ferrari.

The 40-year-old put in extensive hours over the winter to integrate himself into the team as quickly as possible. Italian media suggest Hamilton is facing difficulty adjusting to the Ferrari engine, but time is on his side to find improvements.