Lewis Hamilton’s first week with Ferrari generated a lot of interest as fans gathered in a foggy Maranello to witness his debut.
The seven-time champion’s inaugural run in Italian machinery was delayed due to bad weather, being pushed back by two days to Wednesday.
Hamilton donned a new bright yellow helmet and drove last year’s Ferrari SF-23 in an attempt to adjust to their systems and operations.
He has less than two months before his official debut at the Australian Grand Prix, 18 years on from his first race in the sport with McLaren.
It’ll be the first time since 2019 that the race has hosted the opening event of the season, replacing the Bahrain Grand Prix as the opener.
Ferrari face an additional obstacle for Hamilton’s 2025 car, after deciding to develop an entirely new machine for his arrival – something which could see them struggle with in Melbourne if they haven’t understood their new chassis yet.
Lewis Hamilton was ‘cunning’ to bring John Elkann with him during first week at Ferrari
It was no secret that Ferrari president John Elkann had shared an interest in Hamilton long before he ended up signing with the Scuderia.
The decision to partner him with Charles Leclerc shows the team’s ambitions over the next few seasons. They appear to be in ‘win now’ mode.
Hamilton was impressive in zero grip conditions during his first Ferrari test and showcased his elite car control behind the wheel.
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton’s ‘amazing’ first radio message as a Ferrari driver has now emerged
Antonio Ghini believes that bringing the Ferrari president with him during his first week was a cunning and clever move.
“The fact that Hamilton was cunning [enough] to bring the president with him, is no small thing,” he said.
“From what I saw, I understood he was very pleasant to see the few [social media] films there were. He was like a child in a toy store [Elkann].”
Why 2025 is a big season for Lewis Hamilton’s F1 future
Hamilton has been told to disappear if Ferrari delivers his eighth title with the opportunity to ride in the sunset after breaking the Drivers’ Championship record a possibility.
The level of performance that he will deliver is a bit of an unknown, having struggled in comparison to ex-teammate George Russell at Mercedes last season in a car which was being developed away from his style.
Mike Hezemans thinks Hamilton’s F1 career ends at Ferrari if Leclerc beats him but the Brit proved that he still has plenty of race pace to offer at the end of the 2024 season.
READ MORE: Charles Leclerc told he will ‘never’ be world champion unless he manages one thing against Lewis Hamilton
He would’ve won the Las Vegas Grand Prix if he managed to qualify higher than 10th, and his swansong drive for the Silver Arrows in Abu Dhabi from 16th to 4th was equally as spectacular.
Joining a new project may be the motivation he needs to rediscover his edge in qualifying and lift himself back into true title contention.
