Lewis Hamilton 'happier' after accepting Ferrari reality

There's no doubt that F1 legend Lewis Hamilton has been in better spirits since the summer break.

The seven-time world champion had previously been downbeat about his performances since joining Ferrari, even stating at the Hungarian Grand Prix that he was 'useless' and that his team should consider sacking him.

However, his comments after being knocked out of Q2 at the Azerbaijan GP saw a much more content Hamilton who was remaining positive despite the bitter disappointment of that performance.

"I’m still optimistic for the race I think, in terms of trying to move forwards. But wow, I honestly thought I was fighting for the top three, so it’s a big shock," he declared.

Despite his shock after qualifying, his attitude appears to have been helped by his adjustment of expectations, which has led to better race performance in the past.

At Baku, he got his head down and finished in eighth, securing some crucial points for Ferrari in their fight for second in the constructors' championship.

The Italian GP saw a similar recovery. After starting the race down in 10th due to a penalty carried over from the Dutch GP, Hamilton recovered to finish sixth.

His results since the summer break have been DNF, sixth and eighth. Hardly setting the world alight, yet there have been a lot of positives in amongst that for the Brit, and he appears to be content for now with trying to maximise his results for his new team.

The marked upturn in his attitude and subsequent performances were noticed by F1 legend Martin Brundle at the Italian GP, who reflected: "Once again coming though the pack as he did at Silverstone and other races, we would witness Lewis driving as we remember from years previous.

"All round he looked more comfortable in the car, and seems to have had a mindset adjustment of making the best of what he has instead of being frustrated that he's not got a race-winning car underneath him.

"He's probably also come to terms with just how fast Charles Leclerc is. It was nice to observe Lewis looking happier."

Hamilton adjusting to life at Ferrari?

In the races since the summer break, Hamilton has arguably adjusted to his new reality, trying to maximise the performance of his SF-25 and not comparing himself to fellow Ferrari star, Charles Leclerc.

It remains likely that the seven-time champion's team-mate is going to finish ahead of him in the drivers' championship, especially given the disparity in their qualifying sessions so far this season.

Hamilton is 44 points behind the Monegasque driver with seven race weekends left, and has been outqualified by him on 13 occasions out of 17.

Leclerc has always been billed as super quick, and Hamilton may now know just how quick the 27-year-old is.

That doesn't mean that the tables won't be able to be turned in 2026, however. A Hamilton who has a sniff of an eighth world championship would be a much more difficult prospect for Leclerc to beat, particularly as the Monegasque racer has never been in a championship fight before.

On top of this, much of Hamilton's negativity and disappointing performances in 2025 may well have been down to the fact that he is regularly fighting for sixth or seventh position, rather than 'sexier' grid slots as Leclerc so eloquently described it following the Azerbaijan GP.

Neither Hamilton nor Leclerc have been able to challenge for a single race win in 2025 because of the limitations of their SF-25s, and that must be a desperate feeling for a seven-time world champion.

With wholesale regulation changes sweeping into the sport in 2026, Hamilton may be more content with his current reality knowing that there could be opportunities to add to his record 105 race victories next year, when he has at least had a say in the car he is driving.

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