Lewis Hamilton's F1 boss admits internal talks over 'low energy' at Ferrari

Vasseur, Hamilton, socials — Photo: © IMAGO

Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton's boss admits internal talks over 'low energy' at Ferrari

Ferrari's morale took a battering in 2025

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Friday 2 January 2026 08:58

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Lewis Hamilton's F1 boss Fred Vasseur has revealed the Ferrari team are 'low on energy' after a demanding 2025 season.

While rivals McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes all enjoyed race victories in 2025, Ferrari were left in no man's land, occasionally podium contenders at circuits such as COTA and the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Ferrari's fourth place finish in the 2025 constructors' standings was in part due to their decision to cease their development of the SF-25 in April, and instead focus all their attention on the new regulations and 2026.

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Speaking to Sky Sports Italia, Ferrari's team principal was asked if everything was okay at the team after such a troubling year, to which he admitted energy levels were down.

"Low on energy, but everything's fine," Vasseur said.

"I think you can learn something from every single season. It's not about results or position. You can win races, but there's always a long list of things to work on. And I think that list will ultimately be the same after the 2024 season."

Vasseur reveals Ferrari discussions

Ferrari's disappointing 2025 season was exaggerated further by the arrival of Lewis Hamilton, whose fairytale switch translated into his worst season in F1.

Not only did he fail to claim a single podium over the year, but Hamilton and team-mate Charles Leclerc were both disqualified at the Chinese Grand Prix, a penalty that haunted Ferrari throughout the season.

"It's definitely been a difficult year. We had a difficult start with the tests in Bahrain, then the disqualification in China. That probably put us at a bit of a disadvantage," Vassuer explained.

"We had a good recovery and started to get the situation under control, but by the end of April we were already 110 points behind McLaren. And I think it was the right decision at that point in the season to focus on 2026."

When asked if he delivered a message to his drivers and Ferrari team members going into 2026, Vasseur claimed there has been extensive discussions behind the scenes.

"The end-of-year message, but I think we've spent so many hours together that we're completely aligned, is that we all know the season wasn't good," he continued.

"We've had time to discuss why. But the message is that 2026 is a completely different story. New chassis, new engine, new battery, new fuel, new tyres, everything new.”

"It's almost the same team. I think 2026 is a great opportunity for all the teams on the grid, including us. We have focused our attention on this project. There is good collaboration between the chassis and engine sides.

"It's a real challenge, but also a great opportunity from an engineering point of view… It won't be a question of winning or losing, the focus will always be on developments and the speed of developments.

"It will be a different approach, but it's a great challenge for the team."

F1 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Fred Vasseur