The weather conditions at the Silverstone Circuit were far from ideal for the twelfth round of the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship. For Ferrari, this presented an unexpected yet valuable opportunity to make up ground in the race, despite not starting from the front rows of the grid. In such a complex and competitive scenario, executing the right strategies at the right moments would prove decisive. The historic Italian team was determined to bring home a strong result and was willing to take calculated risks to achieve its objective.
The skies above the Silverstone Circuit did not offer any mercy. Although a pale sun briefly appeared before the start, the track surface remained far from optimal. The track surface, still soaked from rain that had fallen until moments before lights out, was scattered with large damp patches, making the opening laps of the British Grand Prix extremely delicate and treacherous. In this context, Scuderia Ferrari hoped to gain positions during the start by striking a balance between aggressiveness and risk management.
Both Ferrari SF-25 cars started the race fitted with Pirelli intermediate tyres — a choice mirrored by the majority of the grid, as many sections of the Silverstone track were still heavily wet. However, in a surprising move, Charles Leclerc and a few other drivers opted for a bolder strategy: a pit stop during the formation lap to switch to medium slick tyres.
This gamble forced Charles Leclerc to start the race from the pit lane, with the goal of capitalizing on a progressively drying circuit. But the risks became immediately apparent. In the second half of the lap, large puddles were still present, and the thermal degradation of the slick tyres in such conditions made the early stages of the race extremely difficult for the Monegasque driver, who dropped down to fifteenth position.
Meanwhile, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton made a strong start off the line, immediately challenging McLaren’s Lando Norris. However, the British McLaren driver held his ground with determination, maintaining position. In the midfield, the battle was intense until a contact between Liam Lawson and Esteban Ocon triggered the first Safety Car of the race.
During this phase, the Italian squad decided not to call Lewis Hamilton into the pits, banking on forecasts that predicted the return of rain within ten laps. To maintain temperature in the intermediate tyres, Hamilton activated the RB mode — a setting that helps increase heat in the rear tyres. Around the same time, Gabriel Bortoleto went off into the gravel but managed to rejoin the race, though he later retired.
Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen had already started to build a small gap at the front. However, the race was neutralized once again — this time by a Virtual Safety Car — due to Bortoleto’s stranded car at the side of the track. Notably, in the laps leading up to this phase, Lewis Hamilton was lapping around six seconds quicker per lap than Charles Leclerc. This significant time gap raised serious doubts about the effectiveness of Ferrari’s initial strategy for the Monegasque driver.
At lap eight, the race resumed and Leclerc immediately began lapping faster than Hamilton. The Ferrari driver soon engaged in an intense two-lap duel with young Italian talent Kimi Antonelli, eventually overtaking him for thirteenth place. However, just two laps later, both Scuderia Ferrari drivers returned to the pits to switch back to intermediate tyres, as the slicks were proving too difficult to manage under the current conditions.
Lewis Hamilton’s pace prior to the pit stop had been underwhelming, and he had already lost ground to Lando Norris. After the tyre change, the British driver rejoined in seventh position just as the rain returned more heavily. Shortly after, Charles Leclerc lost control of his SF-25 at the high-speed Becketts section, veering onto the grass and losing several seconds. Meanwhile, Hamilton also dropped two positions, leaving Ferrari’s overall outlook increasingly bleak.
SF-25 Still Struggles Heavily in the Wet
The downpour severely limited visibility, prompting race control to deploy the Safety Car again until conditions improved. In these mixed or wet scenarios, the Ferrari SF-25 once more revealed its serious limitations. The car was difficult to drive, erratic in behavior, and challenging to keep within the ideal operating window for tyre performance.
When the race resumed on lap 18, radio messages between the Ferrari drivers and the pit wall revealed growing frustration. There were complaints about poor strategy, tyres that failed to reach optimal temperatures, and major adaptability issues. Lewis Hamilton managed to recover to seventh place, while Charles Leclerc overtook Yuki Tsunoda to climb to twelfth.
Not even a lap later, another dramatic twist: Isack Hadjar lost control of his Racing Bulls car and crashed heavily into the barriers. A new Safety Car period followed, once again resetting the race. As soon as the race restarted, the surprises continued. Max Verstappen made an uncharacteristic mistake at Turn 15, losing control of his Red Bull Racing car and falling back to tenth position — a rare error from the Dutchman.
Lewis Hamilton took full advantage of the situation, climbing to sixth and setting his sights on the trio ahead: Pierre Gasly, Nico Hülkenberg, and Lance Stroll — all theoretically within reach. The problem, however, was that the Ferrari SF-25 still lacked convincing race pace. Despite Hamilton’s efforts to close the gap, he was unable to do so, and Mercedes driver George Russell overtook him cleanly.
Frustrated, Lewis Hamilton voiced his concerns over the radio in no uncertain terms: driving this Ferrari was becoming an almost irrational effort. He described a car that was temperamental, inconsistent, and difficult to handle in both dry and wet conditions. Charles Leclerc also struggled with a constantly shifting balance. The Monegasque pushed hard, but the SF-25 simply did not respond. He was unable to close in on Alexander Albon for eleventh position — a reflection of the car’s poor handling even during overtaking opportunities.
Just as it seemed Lewis Hamilton was heading for a defensive race, he suddenly found renewed confidence. After several laps, he managed to overtake George Russell and reclaim sixth place. With tyre temperatures finally entering the optimal performance window, the SF-25 started to show signs of life.
The tyres began to respond better, and the Ferrari appeared slightly more manageable. A clear sign of improvement came when Hamilton overtook Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, moving up to fifth place. Meanwhile, Kimi Antonelli retired from the race, and Charles Leclerc inherited his position, rising to twelfth. But despite this small gain, Leclerc’s overall pace remained below expectations.
As the track continued to evolve, the Ferrari SF-25 kept showing its structural limitations: a lack of grip, poor responsiveness, and subpar tyre management. The car’s potential remained trapped within a narrow operating window that both drivers struggled to exploit.
By lap 33, Lewis Hamilton set the fastest sector times. The home hero, cheered on by the British crowd, saw a real chance of reaching the podium. The two cars ahead of him were within striking distance on paper. For Charles Leclerc, however, the picture was far less encouraging. He was still stuck behind Alexander Albon, unable to make a move.
Two laps later, Lewis Hamilton overtook Lance Stroll with ease and moved into fourth place. His next target was Nico Hülkenberg. Around this time, radio communications revealed a crucial piece of information: the track was drying rapidly, and the window for switching to slick tyres was opening.
Charles Leclerc finally managed to pass Alexander Albon and quickly caught up to Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard tried to resist, but Leclerc studied his former teammate and passed him in the first sector, moving up to eighth, just behind Max Verstappen. But Hamilton’s momentum started to fade.
The Sauber ahead of him proved too fast to close in on. At lap 42, the Ferrari pit wall made a final gamble: they called Lewis Hamilton in to switch to Pirelli Soft compound slick tyres, hoping that an aggressive undercut might work. But the bet did not pay off. At the first corner, Hamilton locked up, ran wide, and lost precious time.
Moments later, the same scenario unfolded at Becketts, where Hamilton went off track again, this time losing eight seconds to Nico Hülkenberg. Soon after, it was Charles Leclerc’s turn to pit. He too was fitted with red-marked Soft tyres, but the result was no better. The Monegasque driver lost control twice during braking, ran onto the grass and gravel, and dropped to fourteenth place, extinguishing any remaining hopes of a strong finish.
After the tyre changes, both Ferrari drivers pushed to the limit, but the damage was already done. Despite being faster than Hülkenberg, Hamilton’s accumulated gap was too large to recover. A real shame, especially considering that the seven-time world champion had achieved a podium finish in each of his previous 11 appearances at Silverstone — a remarkable streak that came to an end this year with the SF-25.
The same could be said for Charles Leclerc, although his race was marred by more misjudgments — beginning with the poor decision to switch to slicks during the formation lap. Once again, Ferrari struggled to manage changing track conditions. Confusion prevailed, and the calm required to make the right decisions was lacking. Silverstone had the potential to offer great satisfaction… but instead, it ended in deep disappointment.
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