Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton dealt Ferrari 'shock' after 'unexpected' results

Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari career has not gone to plan

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Accredited motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 4 September 2025 20:27

The most shocking element of Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari arrival has been revealed, after his first season at the team was assessed by a fellow F1 champion.

It is no secret that Hamilton’s first year with Ferrari hasn’t gone to plan, with the champion’s F1 career hitting new lows in recent races at Hungary and Zandvoort.

Hamilton made an uncharacteristic error at the Dutch GP last time out, where he crashed into Turn 3 and retired from the race, his first DNF since the US GP last year.

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Speaking to ComeOn Ontario, 1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve analysed whether Hamilton could overcome this hurdle, and why Ferrari has come as such a shock to the Brit's system.

"Do champions give up when the going gets tough or do they become stronger? Lewis has hit a hurdle that he wasn't used to and hasn’t experienced," he said.

"He spent years being cocooned and in a car that was so superior that he did not need to be the best Lewis to win. Even some of the championships he's won he didn't even need to be the best Lewis. He was that good.

"I think that Ferrari has come as a shock to him. But he is better than the results he's been getting."

Can Hamilton succeed at Ferrari?

The main question lingering over Hamilton, is if he can return to the top of the sport in 2026, with a new set of regulations and crucially a car he has had some input in shaping.

Villeneuve posed the same question, with Hamilton’s success all depending on one factor according to the champion.

“Can he overcome that hurdle and become a success again? Of course he can,” Villeneuve continued.

“When he jumped into McLaren, he was fighting Alonso, and it was politically very difficult there and he managed to impose himself. When he went to Mercedes, we thought, ‘What a big mistake.’

“But he managed to turn the team around to himself. So of course he is capable. Now Ferrari is a different beast to tame.

“And I don't think he was expecting that and he wasn't ready for it. So it just depends how much energy he has left to give it.”

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