David Coulthard believes Lewis Hamilton made his transition to Ferrari unnecessarily difficult by joining the Italian team without trusted personnel from Mercedes. Although the seven-time world champion has recovered strongly from a challenging debut campaign and returned to the 2026 title fight, Coulthard thinks that decision continues to affect communication between Hamilton and the Scuderia.
Hamilton has produced significantly stronger results during his second Ferrari season and enters the summer break second in the Drivers’ Championship, 50 points behind Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli. However, the strategic disagreements seen during the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix showed that some aspects of the driver-team relationship are still developing.
David Coulthard questions Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari transition
Hamilton arrived at Maranello in 2025 without bringing established members of his Mercedes support structure with him. His first season consequently involved learning a different car, adapting to Ferrari’s working culture and building new relationships while also attempting to introduce his own methods and philosophy.
The process was far from straightforward. Hamilton experienced several disagreements with former race engineer Riccardo Adami, while Ferrari did not always act upon his feedback. Changes were subsequently made around the British driver, including the appointment of Carlo Santi as his race engineer, with Hamilton responding positively to their developing partnership.
Speaking on the Up To Speed podcast, David Coulthard acknowledged that Hamilton’s relationship with his engineer had been a major subject throughout 2025. He noted that the subsequent engineering change was followed by improved results and a much more positive atmosphere around the partnership.
Nevertheless, the former Formula 1 driver argued that Hamilton could have avoided part of that difficult adjustment by taking a familiar colleague with him from Mercedes. In Coulthard’s view, arriving alongside someone with whom an effective relationship already existed would have removed the need to establish every important connection from the beginning.
Coulthard emphasised his respect for everything Hamilton has achieved but maintained that the Briton had complicated his own task. Alongside understanding an unfamiliar car, Hamilton was simultaneously required to learn a new language, adapt to a different culture and establish trust with the people making decisions around him.
Hungarian GP strategy exposes continuing communication problems
The consequences became apparent again at the Hungaroring. Hamilton initially undercut Max Verstappen through the first round of pit stops, only for the Red Bull driver to recover the position at Turn 1. Ferrari later brought Hamilton in after 17 laps of his second stint, a decision that Verstappen believed had been made too early.
Ferrari then called Hamilton into the pits shortly before the line during the late virtual safety car period. Coulthard explained that the instruction arrived too late for the seven-time world champion to discuss the decision properly with the pit wall. Hamilton therefore assumed that the team possessed information unavailable to him and followed the instruction, even though he already believed remaining on track would have been preferable.
Verstappen chose not to stop under the virtual safety car, while Ferrari’s decision made Hamilton’s closing laps more difficult. The episode became one of several strategic choices that contributed to the team acknowledging that its Hungarian Grand Prix tyre plan had been incorrect.
Coulthard also highlighted the frequency with which Hamilton has questioned decisions over the radio after previously advising Ferrari against them. He suggested that the late virtual safety car instruction provided another example of a driver following the pit wall’s judgement despite holding a different view before the outcome was known.
Lewis Hamilton leaves Hungary with fifth place and a penalty
Hamilton eventually crossed the line fifth after receiving a five-second penalty for pit-lane speeding. The Ferrari driver exceeded the 80km/h limit by only 0.1km/h, adding another setback to a weekend in which strategy and execution prevented the Scuderia from converting its pace into a podium.
The penalty did not change his finishing position, but the race left Hamilton frustrated with the decisions taken around his car. Ferrari’s late stop also removed any remaining possibility of challenging for a place on the podium, contributing to the wider collection of errors that left both Ferrari drivers outside the top three.
Despite those problems, Hamilton’s broader 2026 campaign represents a substantial improvement over his first year in red. Several changes to his inner circle have helped him return to championship contention, and his relationship with Carlo Santi has begun encouragingly. Coulthard’s assessment, however, is that the initial decision to start again without a familiar Mercedes colleague created difficulties that Ferrari and Hamilton are still working to resolve.
Peter Bonnington remained at Mercedes
Several Mercedes figures were linked with a possible move to Maranello after Hamilton confirmed his Ferrari switch. The most prominent was Peter Bonnington, who had served as the Briton’s race engineer throughout much of his successful period with Mercedes.
Bonnington was ultimately ruled out of joining Hamilton in Italy and remained with Mercedes. He is now working with Antonelli as the young Italian attempts to secure the 2026 Drivers’ Championship, entering the summer break with a 50-point advantage over his former colleague’s long-time driver.
Hamilton must therefore pursue his eighth world title with the Ferrari structure assembled around him rather than the familiar personnel who supported his success at Mercedes. For Coulthard, that choice provides important context for the misunderstandings and strategic tensions that have followed the seven-time champion since his arrival in Maranello.
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