Listen to Pit Talk here.<\/a><\/p>\nThe weekend has been hailed as a breakthrough for Hamilton, who has struggled to achieve big results since his sensational switch to Ferrari last season.<\/p>\n
At times last year the seven-time champion openly doubted his abilities and his capacity to excel in his new environment.<\/p>\n
But the Scuderia switch was always predicated on finding equilibrium under new regulations this season. Last year\u2019s torment may have been graver than anticipated, but the potential of the partnership will be proved this year.<\/p>\n
Is this the first sign of that Hamilton has finally found his groove at Ferrari? Or is this just another false dawn?<\/p>\n
“Looked like idiots” Piastri on messy GP | 01:34<\/p>\n
WHAT\u2019S DIFFERENT?<\/p>\n
Though Hamilton struggled for much of last year, his 2025 campaign wasn\u2019t without its bright spots.<\/p>\n
His sprint victory in China \u2014 tellingly, perhaps, just two rounds into the season, before he could become too absorbed in his own difficulties \u2014 started things on the right foot, and after an early dip, he looked in reasonable shape during the early European leg of the season.<\/p>\n
By July, however, he began to fade relative to Leclerc, and by the end of the season he couldn\u2019t even haul himself into the top half of the grid, with three Q1 knockouts concluding the miserable campaign.<\/p>\n
Despite \u2014 and because of \u2014 the toil, Hamilton spent the year writing notes and giving feedback to Ferrari in a bid to improve the situation.<\/p>\n
Part of it was about bringing his title-winning Mercedes experience to a modern Ferrari that needed \u2014 and still needs \u2014 to learn how to be a title contender.<\/p>\n
But part of it was ensuring the team was in the right sort of shape to get the best out of his abilities.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy surroundings in terms of personal personnel, team personnel, how you utilise people, whether people need to move into different positions to work better \u2014 all these different things need to be looked upon in my personal space so that we can optimise our teamwork,\u201d he said in Abu Dhabi last year.<\/p>\n
Asked whether he could carry on with the same team set-up in 2026, his reply was an unequivocal \u201cdefinitely not\u201d.<\/p>\n
There had been some suggestions that Hamilton\u2019s requests had been met with internal roadblocks, which appeared to feed some late-season frustration.<\/p>\n
But during the off-season the first sign of change became apparent, with his race engineer, Riccardo Adami, removed from his post, with Carlo Santi replacing him in what was originally sold as a temporary appointment but which increasingly sounds likely to remain fixed.<\/p>\n
Antonelli and Russell clash in sprint | 03:05<\/p>\n
It was indicative of Hamilton finally being able to shuffle his side of the garage, and he made clear in Canada that he felt the new structure was beginning to gel as he intended it to.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t even begin to explain how deep I\u2019ve had to dig to be able to get to this point, and the work and moving mountains in the background to enable this sort of performance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201c[I\u2019m] working really well with my engineer. He\u2019s absolutely awesome. and I\u2019m really loving working with him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy number two did a fantastic job this weekend and helped me really pull more performance out of the car, getting into a much sweeter place, and I was able to attack all the corners finally.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs I said, there\u2019s a lot of changes that I\u2019ve had to ask for, and Fred [Vasseur, team principal] has been super supportive and, again, also moving mountains in order to make me comfortable.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s finally starting to show in my performance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perhaps it\u2019s the comfort in this new environment that encouraged him to abandon Ferrari\u2019s simulator in preparation for Montreal.<\/p>\n
Simulator work is normally a core part of preparing for a race weekend, with set-up choices developed in the simulator loaded into the car for practice.<\/p>\n
Hamilton, however, suggested in Miami \u2014 where, as in Canada, there was only one practice session \u2014 that the simulator had led him down a set-up dead end from which he was unable to recover.<\/p>\n
In place of the simulator, Hamilton said he \u201cchose a different set-up this weekend through just ciphering through the data\u201d, and he feels validated by the results.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, whether or not I use [the simulator] to prepare for another race \u2014 probably not,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are just too many risks.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at the two best races I\u2019ve had [China and Canada], I didn\u2019t use a simulator, and that\u2019s honestly how it was.<\/p>\n
\u201cPretty much all the championships before, except for probably 2008, I didn\u2019t use the sim, so it\u2019s not a necessity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m old school. I\u2019m probably better without it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Piastri penalised for early collision! | 00:22<\/p>\n
HOW DOES THIS COMPARE TO LAST YEAR?<\/p>\n
Unlike last year\u2019s false dawns, Hamilton is able to ascribe his form improvement to tangible changes, not simply suddenly finding a car sweet spot.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s one reason to be optimistic he is really rediscovering his form.<\/p>\n
The other reason is that the results look better year on year on almost every key metric.<\/p>\n
The below data compares the same five grands prix in 2025 and 2026 but also includes last year\u2019s season-long average results to illustrate how much the picture has changed for Hamilton compared to the end of the previous campaign.<\/p>\n
The gains are less evident in the qualifying head to head, with Leclerc still holding a slender lead.<\/p>\n
Qualifying head to head<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 3-2 (season: 19-5)<\/p>\n
2026: Leclerc 3-2<\/p>\n
The picture is similar in the average gap between their qualifying results \u2014 though note how far Hamilton slid back by the end of last season.<\/p>\n
Qualifying position<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 1.0 ahead (season: Leclerc 3.58 ahead)<\/p>\n
2026: Leclerc 0.8 ahead<\/p>\n
The qualifying difference between them remains narrow \u2014 though, again, it was much larger in late 2025.<\/p>\n
Qualifying time<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 0.068 seconds (season: 0.250 seconds)<\/p>\n
2026: Leclerc 0.094 seconds<\/p>\n
It\u2019s in race conditions, however, that Hamilton\u2019s gains are clear.<\/p>\n
Race head to head<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 4-0 (season: 18-3)<\/p>\n
2026: Hamilton 3-2<\/p>\n
Hamilton has already beaten Leclerc as many times this season as he did for all of 2025 \u2014 in equal parts sobering and hopeful.<\/p>\n
Race position<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 1.8 ahead (season: Leclerc 2.0 ahead)<\/p>\n
2026: Hamilton 0.2 ahead<\/p>\n
Hamilton is now finishing races fractionally ahead of Leclerc instead of between one and two places adrift of his teammate.<\/p>\n
Race margin<\/p>\n
2025: Leclerc 6.538 seconds ahead (season: 15.99 seconds ahead)<\/p>\n
2026: Hamilton 7.422 seconds ahead <\/p>\n
The race margin \u2014 the gap between them at the chequered flag \u2014 has also flipped in Hamilton\u2019s favour \u2014 which is a significant improvement on his late-2025 form.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s by no means domination. Really it\u2019s only Hamilton pulling himself to Leclerc\u2019s level. But after the devastation and despondency of late 2025, that\u2019s a meaningful improvement \u2014 and given the newness of the set-up on Hamilton\u2019s side of the garage, it\u2019s not unreasonable to think that the Briton can get stronger over the season.<\/p>\n
Russell RAGES! Brutal blow ends his race | 01:08<\/p>\n
THE CAVEATS<\/p>\n
Of course it\u2019s hard to declare anything definitively after just one very positive weekend \u2014 and Hamilton fans justifiably would have some trust issues after last season.<\/p>\n
The caveats on this positive reading still weigh heavily.<\/p>\n
The first is evident in the data above. Hamilton wasn\u2019t that far behind Leclerc during the same five grands prix last year, especially in qualifying. While the improvements are obvious, the result in Montreal is doing a lot of heavy lifting to recontextualise his form as a meaningful improvement rather than being within the margin of error.<\/p>\n
It was only late in the year, once the season got into a rhythm, that Hamilton fell off the pace. That combines with the fact that we\u2019re only five grands prix into the season, whereas last year Canada was round 10. If the rule is that Hamilton fades over time, the decline could still be a way off \u2014 assuming it\u2019s to come at all.<\/p>\n
There are also problems with the sample size itself, quite apart from it being only five races.<\/p>\n
Hamilton said it himself \u2014 he undertook his altered non-simulator preparation in China and Canada and enjoyed his best results there.<\/p>\n
But China and Canada have historically been among Hamilton\u2019s best circuits.<\/p>\n
He is the outright most successful driver in China, with a record six poles and six wins.<\/p>\n
Similarly, he shares his record six poles and seven wins in Canada with Michael Schumcaher.<\/p>\n
Only in Great Britain (nine) and Hungary (eight) does Hamilton have more wins and poles.<\/p>\n
Even last season he was more effective at these circuits, outqualifying Leclerc at both, including for the sprint in Shanghai. He did the same this year, plus the first-ever Montreal sprint.<\/p>\n
Unlike last year, though, he\u2019s been able to convert both qualifying performances to Leclerc-beating race results. In China it was a narrow but hard-fought victory, but in Canada it was a comfortable half-minute win, even if it amounted to only two places.<\/p>\n
But then the Canadian Grand Prix was run in highly unusual cold conditions, with the race starting in 13\u00b0C ambient temperatures. Leclerc struggled all weekend, even on warmer Friday and Saturday, but was especially off in the race.<\/p>\n
That doesn\u2019t discount Hamilton as the better performer for not struggling, but the usually dependable Leclerc clearly wasn\u2019t at his best.<\/p>\n
That all amounts to some genuine questions about the sustainability of Hamilton\u2019s improvements. He may be confident that he\u2019s finally cracked the Ferrari code, but without a bigger sample size of strong races, it would be premature to declare him back in the game.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also a Ferrari dimension to this. While comparisons with Leclerc are relevant as Hamilton\u2019s only true benchmark, last year\u2019s car was clearly far below acceptable standards for a team that came close to the 2024 constructors championship, and while this year\u2019s effort is a clear step forward, it\u2019s still a long way away from being a regular Mercedes challenger.<\/p>\n
Beating or being beaten by Leclerc to fourth or fifth place is of limited relevance to either driver given their proven frontrunning abilities.<\/p>\n
But if Hamilton really is confident that he\u2019s turned a corner, he should be licking his lips at the prospect of the Monaco Grand Prix coming up next.<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s any circuit this year at which Ferrari is likely to perform, it\u2019s the serpentine streets of Monte Carlo, where the Scuderia\u2019s engine deficit will be mostly negated by the slow-speed layout \u2014 and where its strengths on traction out of corners will be rewarded.<\/p>\n
Hamilton has won the sport\u2019s most famous race three times \u2014 far from record breaking but hardly shabby. Local boy Leclerc scored his breakthrough win in 2024 after years battling a home-race curse that restricted his abundantly obvious potential to have dominated this race several times over.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the grand prix every driver wants to win, but next weekend Hamilton will have a little extra incentive as he seeks to confirm his long-awaited arrival as a Ferrari force.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lewis Hamilton\u2019s relief was palpable as he took the chequered flag at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. He\u2019d just finished…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":701132,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[944,2620,341389,2095,1724,64,63,166451,241769,24562,4589,2065,242205,13275,49522,512,341407,2055,9239,341396,82605,90122,817,341405,52605,2755,813,816,3875,841,341394,14211,341388,189073,10115,341398,341397,341400,5140,938,341401,2041,2067,341390,2119,136778,22297,341387,2111,106488,31307,21786,341393,81644,337991,341404,341406,341402,22305,4933,34900,341408,85,21738,338003,338001,341391,193114,13773,341399,341392,23055,341395,2614,341403,12000,337987],"class_list":["post-701131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-abu-dhabi","tag-agence-france-presse","tag-ambient-temperatures","tag-america","tag-asia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-best-ever-finish","tag-breakthrough-win","tag-british-driver","tag-brutal-blow","tag-canada","tag-carlo-santi","tag-charles-leclerc","tag-chequered-flag","tag-china","tag-comfortable-half-minute-win","tag-constructors-championship","tag-eastern-asia","tag-engine-deficit","tag-engine-problems","tag-european-leg","tag-f1","tag-famous-race","tag-fantastic-job","tag-florida","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-george-russell","tag-grand-prix","tag-grand-prix-history","tag-grands-prix","tag-home-race-curse","tag-key-metric","tag-kimi-antonelli","tag-late-season-frustration","tag-long-awaited-arrival","tag-meaningful-improvement","tag-miami","tag-montreal","tag-non-simulator-preparation","tag-north-america","tag-northern-america","tag-performing-driver","tag-pit-talk","tag-positive-weekend","tag-practice-session","tag-proven-frontrunning-abilities","tag-quebec","tag-race-conditions","tag-race-engineer","tag-race-weekend","tag-results-look","tag-riccardo-adami","tag-russell-ragesformula","tag-scores-best-ever","tag-serpentine-streets","tag-set-up-choices","tag-seven-time-champion","tag-shanghai","tag-simulator-work","tag-single-finish","tag-sports","tag-sprint-victory","tag-straight-race-victory","tag-sudden-stop","tag-tangible-changes","tag-team-personnel","tag-team-principal","tag-team-set-up","tag-temporary-appointment","tag-title-contender","tag-trust-issues","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unusual-cold-conditions","tag-western-asia","tag-world-championship-hopes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701131","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=701131"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/701131\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/701132"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=701131"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=701131"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=701131"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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