Lewis Hamilton made all the headlines with Ferrari again on Wednesday – but this time not for the right reasons.
The seven-time champion crashed into the barriers at turn 12 of the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona. Hamilton had been driving the SF-23 in a TPC (Testing of Previous Cars) test with teammate Charles Leclerc.
The plan was to run the Brit in the morning before handing the car over to the Monagasque driver – Hamilton and Leclerc cannot run simultaneously due to TPC regulations.
But after the 40-year-old damaged the car, his teammate’s session had to be scrapped. Leclerc was not too disappointed by the outcome as he can run again during the season or in the winter.
Ferrari have been working with their new recruit to integrate him into the team and get him accustomed to the Maranello outfit’s operation.
Hamilton gave very positive impressions to his Ferrari engineers in Barcelona despite the crash. The Brit is said to have gotten used to releasing the clutch for race starts – something predecessor Carlos Sainz struggled with – and the team’s braking system.
Juan Pablo Montoya explains why Lewis Hamilton’s Barcelona Ferrari crash was a ‘big deal’
Hamilton’s crash may have been caused by a bump in the circuit rather than driver error. The Brit will want to get mistakes out early before the season starts in March.
Naturally, the incident made headlines. Hamilton crashed with Mercedes in 2013 at Jerez and with McLaren at Valencia in 2007 – he would win the title with both teams the year after his testing accidents.
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Damon Hill called Hamilton ‘a crashing bore’ as if the trends continue, he will win the 2026 title with Ferrari. But Juan Pablo Montoya was not bothered by the accident.
Speaking on the AS Colombia YouTube channel, the former Williams and McLaren driver explains the crash was a ‘big deal’ due to the speed of the corner and that Hamilton’s chances of hitting anywhere were ‘very low’.
“It is a regular test and the truth is that it does not bother me that he crashed.
“[It] is a curve that, if you don’t trust the car, it can surprise you because it is a fast turn that you can enter very fast and there are a lot of potholes in the middle of the curve.
“Then you can get out of control of the car very easily. Normally it doesn’t happen, but when there’s not much space.
“The reason the accident was a big deal is that when you don’t think about F1, how fast they are going. When you make the mistake and you’re already off the track, the chances of not hitting anything is very low”.
Lewis Hamilton could lose one privilege following his Ferrari crash in Barcelona
Ferrari played down Hamilton’s crash as a minor incident, stating the Brit was ‘absolutely fine’ following the incident. But it may have consequences for the 40-year-old down the line this season.
Ferrari opted not to change the schedule for their test in Barcelona. Subsequently, Hamilton and Leclerc left the circuit with Antonio Giovinazzi and Dino Beganovic driving the SF-23 on Thursday.
The Maranello outfit will conduct a Pirelli tyre test in Barcelona next week with the 2026 rubber. Ferrari will give Hamiltom an ‘unprecedented’ setup on last year’s car as it will simulate 2026 downforce.
The team could extend their stay by an extra day to run another TPC test to make up for the time slot following Hamilton’s crash.
However, if Ferrari do this, Hamilton cannot test mid-season as he will have hit the 1,000km limit over four days. TPC sessions can be vital for data gathering and development during the year as Max Verstappen proved ahead of the Spanish GP on his way to his fourth title.
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