Lewis Hamilton is still getting accustomed to his new surroundings at Ferrari in 2025. After nine races, he has not had the start many were expecting.
The seven-time champion was backed to take the Maranello outfit to the title over the winter alongside Charles Leclerc. However, it has not panned out that way so far in 2025, as Hamilton continues to struggle with this era of cars.
Since the turn of the regulations in 2022, the 40-year-old has lacked performance with ground-effect machinery, going winless with Mercedes during this period up until the 2024 British Grand Prix. He left the Silver Arrows off the back of his lowest career finish last season.
Hamilton hoped the switch to Ferrari would be the fresh start he needed. He has shown glimpses of brilliance with the Sprint win in Shanghai, but he has generally lacked performance as he sits sixth in the standings, 23 points behind Leclerc.
| Position | Drivers’ Championship | Points |
| 1 |
Oscar Piastri |
186 |
| 2 |
Lando Norris |
176 |
| 3 |
Max Verstappen |
137 |
| 4 |
George Russell |
111 |
| 5 |
Charles Leclerc |
94 |
| 6 |
Lewis Hamilton |
71 |
| 7 |
Andrea Kimi Antonelli |
48 |
| 8 |
Alexander Albon |
42 |
| 9 |
Isack Hadjar |
21 |
| 10 |
Esteban Ocon |
20 |
His team’s upgrades and the FIA’s initiatives to bring the field closer have not helped things. Ferrari spent half of their budget on the flexi-wing clampdown, only for Hamilton’s SF-25 to go one tenth slower with the new front wing.
But Ferrari did claim second in the constructors’ championship over his former team Mercedes after the Spanish GP. The two teams’ performance in 2025 has led to comparisons between Hamilton and the driver who replaced him.
Toto Wolff thinks it’s ‘unfair’ to compare Lewis Hamilton with Kimi Antonelli in 2025
Kimi Antonelli had huge shoes to fill when he was signed as a Mercedes driver for 2025. Coming in as the third youngest F1 driver of all time, replacing a seven-time champion was a daunting prospect.
Much like Hamilton, the Italian has shown flashes of his potential, such as finishing fourth from P16 on debut in Melbourne and claiming pole for the Sprint in Miami.
But the 18-year-old has fallen on hard times recently, failing to score points in the last three races, with two mechanical retirements. The European triple header took ‘chunks’ out of Antonelli’s confidence, but he is determined to put things right over the next few races.
Antonelli is not thinking about Hamilton this season, as he sees himself as the next Mercedes driver, rather than the Brit’s replacement. Team boss Toto Wolff does not like the comparisons being made between the two, claiming to TSN that it is ‘unfair’ when they are both still settling in.
“I think Lewis has joined a new team and it’s going to take time to settle in, but he’s already shown great races like in China,” he said.
“And same for Kimi, he’s 18 and hopefully has a long career in front of him in Formula 1. So, I think that comparison is not fair for either.”
READ MORE: Know all about 2025 Mercedes F1 driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli including stats
What have people been saying about Kimi Antonelli compared to Lewis Hamilton?
With Antonelli replacing Hamilton at Mercedes, it was only natural that people were going to make comparisons between the rookie and the 40-year-old.
The pair are in similar positions as they learn to work in their new environments. Hamilton has the edge at Ferrari with 71 points compared to Antonelli’s 48, but people are recognising the potential in the Mercedes driver.
Justin Bell claimed Antonelli is doing a ‘better job’ than Hamilton after he observed the Miami GP and how he keeps his head down under pressure, while the Brit is heard complaining about his car over the radio.
Hamilton has been giving Antonelli advice during his rookie season, which he seems to be taking in his stride. Antonelli’s feedback with Peter Bonnington is exceptional, says Martin Brundle, as he makes a seamless transition to F1.
