Lewis Hamilton has had to learn a lot in a very short amount of time since joining Ferrari from Mercedes ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
He hasn’t quite been able to translate what he has done into raw pace on track. An eighth drivers’ championship already looks unlikely after just one event.
Hamilton finished 10th at the Australian Grand Prix but did manage to lead the race momentarily before a heavy band of rain hit the circuit.
A strategy gamble cost him a slightly better result on his Ferrari debut, but qualifying too suggested that the Italian team may have the fourth-fastest car currently.
Peter Windsor ‘can’t believe’ Hamilton and Ferrari for failing to rectify a communication issue before their first official race weekend together. It hurt their chances.
After settling into his new car, Hamilton has already made one ‘adjustment’ at Ferrari to his driving style. He’s no longer afraid to try new things now he is at a new team.
READ MORE: Martin Brundle completely disagrees with one thing Ferrari have just said about Lewis Hamilton’s Australian Grand Prix debut
Christian Danner thinks Lewis Hamilton is ‘completely overwhelmed’ by Ferrari information
Joining a team that isn’t based in England was always going to be a big challenge for Hamilton. There’s an obvious language and communication barrier.
Christian Danner feels that the Brit was drowning in information in Melbourne and that it may have been too much for him.
“That’s why I always said before the season started that we’ll just wait and see. He has to get into the car now and then only the stopwatch counts,” he said.
“What we were able to see in Melbourne, however, was shocking. Because Lewis gave me the impression that he was simply completely overwhelmed.
“He was completely overwhelmed with the information, which, in contrast to the Leclerc water story, came across very soberly and clearly as to what he should do or how he could be helped. He obviously has great difficulties with the entire Ferrari package.”
The upcoming Chinese Grand Prix is a permanent circuit and should suit the Ferrari more, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of hard work to be doing.
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton left ‘disappointed’ in Ferrari for one reason after frustrating Australian Grand Prix debut
Marc Priestley noticed something ‘interesting’ in Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari radio messages
Hamilton’s engineer this year is the same man who was there for both Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel during their time at the team – Riccardo Adami.
Adami is no rookie and has been through just about every situation in the book during his team with the team.
Marc Priestley noticed Hamilton’s Ferrari radio messages were polite in Australia, but it may have been due to it being very early stages for him in red.
He did have to ask his race engineer to stop repeating phrases to him, but that sort of knowledge comes with familiarity.
Expect there to be more urgency in their conversations in China after a disappointing first race of the season. They will be desperate to bounce back in Shanghai.
