Hamilton says Ferrari struggles echo early Mercedes days

Lewis Hamilton has drawn a direct comparison between his early struggles at Ferrari and the initial adjustment period he experienced after leaving McLaren for Mercedes more than a decade ago.

The seven-time World Champion’s much-hyped switch to the Scuderia has so far fallen short of expectations, with the Briton yet to finish on the podium after the first five rounds of the 2025 Formula 1 season.

Despite clinching Ferrari’s only win of the year in the Chinese Sprint, Hamilton has consistently trailed team-mate Charles Leclerc in full-length Grands Prix, including a 30-second deficit in Saudi Arabia last time out.

Yet the forty-year-old has made it clear he’s not discouraged by the rocky start, noting that history is repeating itself as he recalls similar difficulties when he first joined Mercedes in 2013.

Navigating New Terrain

“When I joined Mercedes, the first six months were tough getting attuned to working with new people,” Hamilton told the media in Miami on Thursday.

“The engineers I’m working with now are used to setting up a car for a different driver and a different driving style, and I’m used to driving a car with a different driving style.

“So it’s a combination of a bunch of different things.”

That six-month stretch at Mercedes eventually gave way to one of the most dominant eras in Formula 1 history, with Hamilton claiming six titles between 2014 and 2021.

While there’s hope history could repeat itself, Hamilton acknowledged there’s no guaranteed timeline for things to click at Ferrari.

“I really don’t know. I generally don’t,” he said when asked if a similar six-month turnaround was expected.

“We’re working as hard as we can to shorten that, but it could be longer. Who knows?”

Work Behind the Scenes to Unlock Ferrari Potential

In the lead-up to this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, Hamilton took the opportunity to dive deeper into understanding the Ferrari SF-25.

The Briton spent time in Maranello during the short break, seeking answers to improve his performances going forward.

“Spent some good time in Italy,” he revealed. “We went through a lot, did some good sim running.

“There are things that we’ve made adjustments to. We’ll see how they work this weekend.”

Despite the effort behind the scenes, Hamilton was clear that Ferrari has not introduced any major upgrades to the car in Miami, and that his challenge remains extracting more from the current package.

“We’ll do the best we can,” he said. “We’ve not got upgrades or anything this weekend, but we continue to try and optimise the car.

“Obviously, Charles in the last race [third in Saudi Arabia] did a fantastic job and showed what the car can do in a race. So the goal is to try to replicate that.”

Hamilton’s Ferrari chapter may have begun with frustration, but his reflections suggest a driver drawing on past experience, trusting the process, and keeping his focus on long-term gains – just as he did on the road to greatness with Mercedes.

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