Ferrari was widely expected to dominate the 2025 Formula 1 season, with hopes of securing both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ World Championships. However, the reality proved somewhat different. Despite this, it would be a substantial mistake to label the season as an outright failure, especially when considering the broader context and the many challenges the Scuderia faced throughout the year.
Much of this situation comes down to expectations. When a driver or team wears the iconic red racing suit of Scuderia Ferrari, winning is not just an objective—it is an imperative. Success is considered almost a requirement, and anything less than the very top step of the podium is often perceived as underperformance. Yet, as in all areas of sport and indeed in life, the reality of competition is often far more complex than the narrative set by anticipation and public imagination. When one examines Ferrari’s 2025 season with a careful eye, the perspective changes, revealing a narrative that includes resilience, adaptation, and strategic recalibration.
The story effectively begins on February 1st, 2024. On an otherwise ordinary, cold, and gray Thursday morning, a piece of news was released that would reverberate through the entire world of Formula 1: Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time Formula 1 World Champion, had officially signed with Ferrari and would join the Scuderia starting from the 2025 season. The significance of this announcement cannot be overstated. It was compared to the famous “Decision” moment in basketball when LeBron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat in 2010-2011. From the moment the news broke, expectations and excitement soared to unprecedented heights.
The symbolism of this move was immediate and powerful. A seven-time world champion like Lewis Hamilton, a driver often compared to the legendary Michael Schumacher, joining Ferrari, a team historically associated with Michael Schumacher’s dominance and with the goal of restoring the team to glory, naturally created a narrative that seemed almost preordained. For a brief period, the global attention shifted so intensely to Lewis Hamilton that Charles Leclerc, the young Monegasque driver who had been Ferrari’s leading star and team captain, seemed momentarily overshadowed. Charles Leclerc had, until that point, been the team’s guiding light and the embodiment of the Scuderia’s ambitions.
As 2024 Formula 1 unfolded, the transition became evident. Despite Ferrari showing flashes of brilliance, including a late-season surge in the Constructors’ Championship, the year increasingly felt like a transitional one, a preparatory season setting the stage for the challenges and opportunities of 2025.
The ignored signs and the emergence of McLaren
The 2024 Constructors’ Championship was ultimately claimed by McLaren, a team that had returned to winning form after a prolonged period of more than two decades without consistent victories. Under the leadership of team principal Andrea Stella, McLaren demonstrated remarkable progress, nearly clinching the Drivers’ Championship as well, only narrowly missing out in an extraordinary Brazilian Grand Prix where Max Verstappen produced a masterful performance.
In the context of modern Formula 1 history, it is exceptionally rare for a team that achieves success to fail to build upon it immediately in the following season. The last comparable example was Brawn GP, which disappeared entirely from the grid after its magical 2009 season, a unique and unlikely exception. For McLaren, the signs of competitiveness were evident well before 2025. The MCL38, victorious in Abu Dhabi, the final race of the calendar in 2024, was a highly competitive car, closely matched by Ferrari’s steadily improving SF-24.
For the 2025 season, McLaren opted for continuity in its engineering approach. The MCL39 represented the culmination of an extreme technical project, characteristic of the final year in a technical cycle, but it was a calculated risk. Designed from the outset to dominate the championship, the car quickly demonstrated its potential. The paddock was acutely aware that McLaren had produced a formidable package, and the early races confirmed that prediction.
In hindsight, it might be considered slightly misleading to describe these developments as “ignored signs.” Many experts and insiders within the Formula 1 community had already predicted the challenge posed by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Yet, the idea of a fiercely contested season, filled with uncertainty and competitive intrigue, is naturally appealing to fans, and in motorsport, public perception often matters as much as actual results. This led to the emergence of concepts like “the season of close competition,” the so-called “asymptotes of development,” and the notion of “four teams separated by mere thousandths of a second.” While all of these statements are grounded in reality, they only present part of the broader picture.
Ferrari in pre-season: beautiful, ambitious, and challenging
Meanwhile, in Maranello, Lewis Hamilton officially joined Ferrari. The announcement generated immense excitement among fans around the world, and Hamilton himself appeared motivated, confident, and visibly smiling as he began his new chapter with the historic Scuderia. His iconic photograph, taken with the famous eighth window of the Maranello factory closed behind him, circulated globally, symbolizing a new era for Ferrari.
Ferrari seized the opportunity to capitalize on the publicity and global attention generated by Lewis Hamilton’s arrival. The enthusiasm was contagious, and the factory in Maranello released encouraging updates suggesting that 2025 could indeed be a breakthrough year.
However, early signs at the Bahrain Grand Prix hinted at challenges ahead. McLaren demonstrated remarkable pace from the outset, leaving Ferrari to grapple with the realities of a highly competitive field. Despite these early difficulties, the seed of hope had been planted. Once rooted, the belief that Ferrari could still achieve success proved impossible to uproot.
The SF-25, Ferrari’s new car for 2025, marked a significant departure from the philosophy of its predecessor, the SF-24. Unlike McLaren, which continued a path of evolutionary development, Ferrari took a more revolutionary approach, aiming to unlock new potential within its machinery. While the design and strategy may have been ambitious, the results in terms of championship victories favored the British team, as McLaren secured both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships once again.
Beyond results: the resilience of Maranello
The first podium for Ferrari’s SF-25 came in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, during the fifth race of the 2025 Formula 1 calendar, when Charles Leclerc finished in third place. In contrast, during the previous season, Ferrari had achieved podium finishes in all of the first four races, including a one-two finish at Melbourne. The lack of victories in 2025, especially when compared to McLaren’s eleven wins, highlights the stark challenge Ferrari faced.
Yet the story of Ferrari in 2025 is not solely defined by wins and losses. The Scuderia demonstrated resilience, adaptation, and strategic intelligence. Despite early-season difficulties and even some disqualifications, Ferrari maintained a strong position in the Constructors’ Championship, holding second place after a mid-season period marked by setbacks, including the controversial events at the Hungarian Grand Prix. This is a significant accomplishment, especially when considering that Mercedes and Red Bull have not consistently threatened Ferrari’s second-place position.
A great deal of credit is due to team principal Frédéric Vasseur, who has led Ferrari since 2023. Under his leadership, the Scuderia has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to improve performance mid-season, an accomplishment that was once considered almost unattainable for Ferrari in recent years. Fred Vasseur’s guidance, combined with the skill and determination of drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, has ensured that Ferrari remains competitive despite the dominance of McLaren.
Looking forward to 2026 and beyond
Of course, second place is not sufficient for a team of Ferrari’s stature. The famous phrase from Enzo Ferrari, “Second is the first of the losers,” continues to resonate within Maranello. McLaren has clearly emerged as the strongest team in 2025, leaving other competitors, including Ferrari, to chase from behind.
Yet context and perspective matter. Beating the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in 2025 would have required a near-miraculous performance. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have formed one of the most competitive driver pairings on the grid, but they were up against a car that was engineered to dominate from the outset.
As the 2025 season continues, Ferrari fans are left balancing disappointment with cautious optimism. While the world championships are no longer attainable, the Scuderia has proven its resilience, growth, and commitment to long-term success. Lewis Hamilton is adapting to his new environment, Charles Leclerc remains the team’s cornerstone, and the organization as a whole is focusing on the structural and technical improvements that will be crucial under the new regulations in 2026.
For now, one certainty stands out: Ferrari has not failed. The Scuderia has once again demonstrated its capacity to overcome setbacks, correct mistakes, and continue striving for excellence. The 2025 season, rather than representing a failure, reflects the challenges of competing at the highest level in modern Formula 1 and underscores the team’s unwavering determination to fight back stronger in the future.
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