Lewis Hamilton has had a monumental week with Ferrari, even though he hasn’t yet made his official debut with the team. On Tuesday, he made his first public appearance in Ferrari colors at the F1 75 event held in London.
At the event, British F1 fans stood out for their widespread display of Ferrari’s iconic red – a rare sight, particularly for a British driver. The crowd erupted in cheers as Lewis Hamilton took the stage at the O2 Arena, where he was met with an overwhelming show of support.
During the event, Ferrari also unveiled their SF-25 livery before quickly jetting back to Italy. The team’s drivers then took to the track for the first time with the new car. Charles Leclerc was the first to hit the track on Wednesday morning, followed by Lewis Hamilton in the afternoon.
The seven-time world champion has been busy completing an extensive private testing program over the winter. He has driven the 2023 Ferrari at Fiorano and the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, the latter of which saw a crash, and has also tested last year’s car around the Spanish Grand Prix circuit on 2026-spec Pirelli tires.
Next week, Lewis Hamilton will participate in what is likely to be his most crucial test yet when teams gather in Bahrain for the pre-season testing. All eyes will be on the onboard footage and lap times to gauge his comfort level with the new machinery.
The British driver’s formal debut with Ferrari will take place at the Australian Grand Prix on March 16, and his first race in front of the passionate Tifosi will come at the Emilia Romagna GP two months later.
The buzz surrounding Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari remains palpable, with Karun Chandhok among the many excited about the prospect. Widely regarded as one of the most significant driver transfers in Formula 1 history, Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari marks a partnership that has now combined for 22 drivers’ titles and an incredible 353 race wins.
Though it’s been over a year since the transfer was announced and a month since Lewis Hamilton’s first test with the team, the anticipation continues to build. Only a poor start to the season could potentially diminish the hype at this stage. However, Liberty Media, F1’s commercial rights holders, are hoping that Lewis Hamilton’s move will bring a surge of global interest from the very beginning. On his Instagram story, Sky Sports F1 pundit Karun Chandhok revealed that Lewis Hamilton’s transfer is one of his primary sources of excitement for the upcoming season. He’s already counting down the days to Melbourne. He wrote that there were only 24 days left until the first F1 race of the season and that the excitement surrounding Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari was “unreal.”
Lewis Hamilton has reassessed his view of Fernando Alonso after experiencing life at Ferrari for himself.
Hamilton expressed that his enthusiasm for the sport remains as high as it was back in 2007 when he made his debut with McLaren. He was able to secure his first victory at the Canadian Grand Prix by round six that season. However, he acknowledged that even achieving that same level of success would not measure up to the feats of Alonso and Sebastian Vettel during their time with Ferrari. Alonso made an immediate impact by winning on his Ferrari debut in Bahrain in 2010, and Vettel took victory in just his second race with the team in Malaysia.
Now that the British driver has joined Ferrari, he has gained a new appreciation for the challenges Alonso and Vettel faced. He has come to understand the complexities of adapting to the team and its car.
Lewis Hamilton’s own experience with Ferrari has not been without its difficulties. He faced a tough weekend at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne last year, where he struggled with qualifying in 11th place before having to retire from the race due to engine problems. While the Monegasque driver reportedly experienced some issues during testing, the Maranello team is optimistic that they will avoid such reliability concerns this season.
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