F1 legend Lewis Hamilton still believes Ferrari can have the fastest car this season

Ferrari F1

Lewis Hamilton still believes Ferrari can have the fastest car this season

Big words! Now for the team to back them up...

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Sunday 24 May 2026 08:30

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Lewis Hamilton has continued to back his Ferrari team's development abilities, as they come to terms with the 2026 F1 regulations.

The seven-time world champion has been much more upbeat in his media appearances this year, compared to the forlorn figure he cut for the second half of 2025, and called his machinery 'fantastic' this weekend in Canada.

The Brit has shown impressive pace throughout practice, the sprint proceedings and grand prix qualifying – but has nevertheless ended both qualifying sessions fifth, and finished sixth in the sprint race behind his team-mate Charles Leclerc.

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However, those struggles are relatively explicable. Put simply, while Ferrari's chassis might even be the best on the grid, their engine lacks a little bit of oopmh at the top of the scale compared to the Mercedes engines that their two main rivals are running.

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Hamilton: The car is fantastic

Admitting that he and Leclerc remain 'at the mercy' of that lack of power as things stand, especially at such an engine-reliant circuit like this weekend's in Montreal, Hamilton still backed the team at Maranello to continue to develop successfully.

Asked by Sky Sports' Rachel Brookes if he believed that Ferrari could become the team to beat if they can extract a little more power in the weeks and months ahead, he said: "Yes, absolutely.

"I mean, the guys at the factory have done an amazing job with the car, and we still have improvements to make, but the car is fantastic. It's just, it's a battle of development through the season.

“Obviously, some people bring upgrades one weekend and others the other, but yeah, we just have to have the mercy of the lack of power that we have, and I know that everyone worked really hard on the engine. The reliability is obviously very good. It's just when you're lacking that straight line speed against the Mercedes, it's very, very tough.

“But nonetheless, you know, we expect that the rest of the season, that's just the way it is. So we'll just try and see if we can continue to add on to the car and try and close the gap, if we can go to quicker three corners in some, some races, maybe we can get closer to the challenge in front of us.”

F1 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari