Anthony Davidson has drawn a detailed comparison between Lewis Hamilton’s difficult first season at Ferrari and the environment he previously enjoyed during his highly successful years at Mercedes, suggesting that the Scuderia are still missing a crucial ingredient that once helped the seven-time world champion thrive.
Lewis Hamilton’s extraordinary record of six Formula 1 world titles with Mercedes remains unmatched in the modern era, and it is unlikely to be threatened in the short term unless Red Bull and Max Verstappen extend their dominance under the upcoming regulation changes. Hamilton famously surpassed Michael Schumacher’s championship tally with Ferrari back in 2020, but he is now chasing a very different milestone: delivering his first drivers’ title for the Scuderia.
Based on what unfolded during the 2025 season, it is clear that Fred Vasseur’s Ferrari team must make significant progress over the winter break if that ambition is to become realistic. Despite flashes of competitiveness, Hamilton’s debut campaign in red was marked by inconsistency, operational issues, and visible tension over team radio.
Within Ferrari, there is an understanding that Hamilton is still searching for the same level of trust, clarity, and cohesion that defined his years at Mercedes. Davidson appears to sympathise with that mindset, believing the Briton is right to push for structural changes rather than simply adapting in silence. In particular, Davidson has pointed to the absence of Peter Bonnington, Hamilton’s long-time race engineer at Mercedes, as a key factor that has made the transition more difficult.
While Ferrari are believed to be considering Luca Diella for the role ahead of the new season, Davidson suggested that the influence Bonnington once had on Hamilton’s performances should not be underestimated, even if the race engineer is only one part of a much larger picture.
Anthony Davidson highlights what Ferrari are missing from Hamilton’s Mercedes era
Speaking on The F1 Show Podcast, Davidson explained that Ferrari’s issues could not be reduced to a single personnel change, but he made it clear that the race engineer situation symbolised deeper challenges within the team’s structure. He argued that switching race engineers was merely one step in a broader process that Ferrari need to undertake to unlock Hamilton’s full potential.
Davidson emphasised that Formula 1 is the ultimate team sport, with well over a thousand people working behind the scenes to design, develop, and operate a competitive car. For a driver of Hamilton’s profile, he believes it is essential that communication flows smoothly across every layer of that organisation.
According to Davidson, Hamilton is an exceptionally vocal driver who relies heavily on feedback loops and mutual trust. Last season, Davidson felt that this sense of collective alignment was missing, which only increased the pressure on Hamilton during an already challenging adaptation period. He noted that the tense and sometimes awkward radio exchanges inevitably invited comparisons with the seamless partnership Hamilton once shared with Bonnington at Mercedes.
Davidson suggested that many of the questions Hamilton asked over the radio would never have arisen in his previous environment, nor would Bonnington have responded in the same way that Ferrari engineers sometimes did. In his view, that contrast underlined just how different Hamilton’s working conditions had become.
The former F1 driver also reflected on how isolating the season may have felt for Hamilton, describing it as a lonely experience for a driver accustomed to unwavering support. Davidson expressed hope that Ferrari’s upcoming changes would allow Hamilton to rebuild a close-knit group around him, arguing that if there is any driver on the grid worth listening to when it comes to building a successful team, it is Lewis Hamilton. Given his experience and record, Davidson believes Ferrari would be wise to pay close attention to his feedback.
David Croft sheds light on Ferrari’s race engineer situation
Uncertainty remains around who will ultimately become Hamilton’s new race engineer, and Ferrari are not expected to have that long-term appointment finalised for pre-season testing in Barcelona. In the meantime, Bryan Bozzi is set to fulfil the role for both Ferrari drivers during the test programme.
That temporary solution is far from ideal for Hamilton, who would naturally prefer to begin building a strong working relationship as early as possible, especially with just nine days of testing scheduled before the opening race of the season in Australia.
Discussing the situation alongside Davidson, Sky Sports commentator David Croft shared what he had been hearing from within the paddock. Croft suggested that the previous relationship between Hamilton and Riccardo Adami had not been progressing in a positive direction and that the decision to part ways was ultimately unavoidable.
David Croft explained that integrating new personnel into an established Formula 1 team is always a challenge, and success often depends on how effectively management handles that process. In this case, he indicated that Ferrari had struggled to make the partnership work, which only added pressure to Hamilton’s shoulders.
Despite that, Croft stressed that Hamilton remains more than capable of coping with the added strain and believes the Briton will take confidence from the expectation that his next race engineer will be someone with whom he can build a more productive relationship. He also hinted that Ferrari are likely to promote someone already within the organisation, potentially a figure Hamilton may have known from earlier in his career, although no official announcement has yet been made.
As Ferrari continue to reshape their internal structure, the coming months could prove decisive in determining whether Lewis Hamilton can rediscover the environment that once helped him become one of the most successful drivers in Formula 1 history.
Leave a Reply