Ferrari offers reason for Lewis Hamilton's dismal 2025

Ferrari vice chairman Piero Ferrari has offered a reason for the team's 2025 slump since Lewis Hamilton joined.

Having finished within 11 points of constructors' champions McLaren last season, expectations were high that Ferrari could challenge for their first title of any kind since 2008, particularly with the signing of seven-time champion Hamilton.

However, 2025 has been a disaster for Hamilton, not having picked up a single grand prix podium across his first 14 races with the team, while the Scuderia are 299 points behind McLaren in this year's constructors' championship.

While Hamilton's lack of form has been alarming - he has been outqualified by team-mate Charles Leclerc 10 times out of 14 - there is also a wider problem at Ferrari, with their SF-25 clearly not capable of challenging for race victories.

Now, Ferrari - who is the son of legendary founder of the luxury car brand Enzo Ferrari - has offered a reason for why Ferrari have experienced a drop off in 2025, blaming F1's cost cap.

"I think it’s a matter of cycles," he told Gazzetta. "F1 has always worked this way, and when you start a negative cycle, you don’t know when you’ll hit rock bottom.

"Today, it’s very complicated because you can’t spend more money to bridge the gaps, given the budget cap restrictions. You need to string together a series of winning factors to change course."

Can Hamilton bounce back at Ferrari?

Seven-time world champion Hamilton's only success with Ferrari so far has come in the form of a sprint race victory at the Chinese GP earlier this year, and he sits down in sixth in the drivers' standings, 42 points behind Leclerc.

While both championships are gone for Ferrari, they are attempting to seal a top-two finish in the constructors' championship, as well as using the rest of 2025 to try and rebuild the confidence of Hamilton.

Wholesale regulation changes are heading to F1 in 2026, which will present an opportunity for Hamilton to race in a different car design which may just suit his talents better.

The current generation of F1 cars - brought in for the 2022 season onwards - have yielded just two race victories for Hamilton in almost four full seasons.

He has adopted a rather negative attitude of late, and even called for his team to consider replacing him at the Hungarian Grand Prix, but his contract runs until the end of the 2026 season, so he will have at least one more opportunity to seal a record-breaking eighth world title.

READ MORE: F1 drivers age: How old are Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen, Norris and co?

READ MORE: F1 world champions: Full list from Farina to four-time King Verstappen

F1 HEADLINES: Hamilton given boost of confidence as Wolff hints at 2026 driver comeback

READ MORE: Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff drops hint over 2026 driver comeback

Related