F1 News: Lewis Hamilton issues Ferrari demand after missed Bahrain Grand Prix chance

Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Malaysia, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

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Lewis Hamilton issues Ferrari demand after missed Bahrain Grand Prix chance

Hamilton outlines where Ferrari need to improve

Dan Ripley Global Editor

Professional F1 journalist and analyst

Tuesday 6 October 2026 12:28 Updated: 12:34

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Lewis Hamilton has praised his Ferrari team following a stunning drive at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

After a shocking start from P2 that came with a bad call to go with slick tyres on a wet track, the seven-time world champion hauled himself from P18 to the podium in P3 with a series of excellent overtaking moves on rivals despite having older tyres.

Despite the success of his comeback, Hamilton's pace would have put him in contention for the win had he started on the intermediate tyres alongside Verstappen on the front row.

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After the race in Sepang, Hamilton praised his car and team, insisting they have been the pioneers for the new 2026 regulations.

Hamilton delighted with Ferrari pioneers

He told Sky Sports: "I think fundamentally we've got a great car, really, and and that's down to an amazing group of people back at the factory who really have intelligent and made the right decisions.

"And as I said before, we have been innovators this year. We've got things, had things on the car which everyone else has followed.

Despite the success in the design of the SF-26, Ferrari are already as good as out of both title battles, with Hamilton 106 points behind Mercedes Kimi Antonelli in the drivers' championship and Ferrari 151 points behind the Silver Arrows in the constructors'.

The main issue for the Maranello team has been the engine, which has been significantly down on power compared to their rivals which includes Mercedes, Red Bull and even McLaren who run a customer Mercedes supply.

Ferrari's engine is the Achilles heel

The seven-time world champion has now called on Ferrari to ensure that the power unit for 2027 is good enough to challenge their rivals and become major world title contenders.

Hamilton added: "It's just we're in an era that we know where we're down on power, and that's something we just live with. We've got to try.

"We have to catch up for next year, and so we live with that deficit the rest of this year.

"But still, the car is improving, and I think we've got races coming up ahead that we hopefully will still be able to get maybe a little bit closer, and we just keep trying.

"And I'm enjoying the racing still. Still feel fit, still feel focused."

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