Lewis Hamilton has started a new phase of his Formula 1 career after joining Ferrari, but Anthony Davidson is adamant a ‘difficult’ challenge is coming with the Scuderia.
The Stevenage native has swapped the Silver Arrows for the Scuderia as Hamilton chases a record-breaking eighth Formula 1 drivers’ championship after sealing six with Mercedes. He would eclipse Michael Schumacher who won five of his record-setting seven racing a Ferrari.
Hamilton is the 12th British driver to race for Ferrari after replacing Carlos Sainz, who signed with Williams to remain on the grid. The Scuderia are just the third team the 40-year-old has ever raced with in F1, having started what became a legendary career with McLaren in 2007.
Lewis Hamilton faces a ‘difficult’ challenge moving from Mercedes to Ferrari engines
Racing for McLaren and Mercedes for the past 18 seasons means Hamilton will experience a Ferrari engine for the first time this year. He spent six seasons in Woking for one drivers’ title before bouncing to Brackley in 2013, and going on to secure six in the next eight campaigns.
Sky Sports F1 pundit Davidson is adamant that Hamilton faces a ‘difficult’ challenge moving from Mercedes to Ferrari engines. The Scuderia’s power unit presents a very different beast to what the Briton is accustomed to, like with its hybrid energy deployment to its drivability.
READ MORE: All you need to know about Lewis Hamilton’s move from Mercedes to Ferrari
Davidson believes it will not matter that Hamilton holds the records for the most Grand Prix wins (105), podiums (202) and poles (104) when it comes to learning Ferrari’s engine. So, he ought to draw inspiration from great rival Fernando Alonso in adapting to a new power unit.
Davidson told RacingNews365: “I think even he, himself, is keen to find out how long that is going to take. He’s come from having Mercedes power units his whole career and it is going to be difficult.
“No matter how good you are, it is going to be difficult to learn a new power unit. But then you look at Fernando Alonso, who has driven loads of different power units.
“He comes from a similar background to Lewis in terms of experience and capabilities behind the wheel, so it can be done.”
Lewis Hamilton has only driven Mercedes V8 and V6 engines in F1 before joining Ferrari
Alonso has experienced more than his fair share of engines since debuting in Formula 1 with Minardi back in 2001. The 43-year-old (who is the only driver on the 2025 F1 grid older than Hamilton) has competed with Cosworth, Renault, Mercedes, Ferrari and Honda power units.
READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory
His long CV also includes Cosworth and Renault V10s, Renault, Mercedes and Ferrari V8s, Ferrari, Honda, Renault and Mercedes V6s. Hamilton, on the other hand, has spent his days driving V8 and V6 engines from Mercedes but must now learn how to utilise the Ferrari unit.
More than 1,000 Ferrari fans watched Hamilton’s first outing at Fiorano in a 2023 season car for his first taste of the Scuderia’s engine. His trip to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya then gave him a chance to push as Ferrari maximised Hamilton’s Barcelona test without any fans.
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