Lewis Hamilton’s strong weekend in Austin shows Ferrari’s growing potential
Lewis Hamilton experienced one of his most competitive weekends since joining Scuderia Ferrari, delivering a confident and consistent performance at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in Austin. Despite missing out on a long-awaited podium finish, the seven-time world champion demonstrated clear progress with the Ferrari SF-25, proving that the team’s recent developments are moving in the right direction.
A challenging start turns into a promising race
The weekend began with uncertainty for Ferrari, as both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton narrowly scraped into the top 10 during the Sprint Shootout. Early sessions indicated that the Italian team lacked the outright pace to compete with Red Bull and McLaren. However, Ferrari’s engineers made crucial overnight adjustments that allowed both drivers to regain competitiveness for the main event.
In the Sprint, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton both managed to collect valuable points, showcasing encouraging race pace. During qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix, Leclerc extracted the maximum from the car to secure third on the grid, while the Briton lined up fifth, setting the stage for another intra-team battle at the front of the midfield.
Hamilton’s climb through the field and early momentum
At the start of the race, Hamilton immediately showed aggression, passing George Russell and closing in on the leading pack. Meanwhile, Leclerc initially maintained his position ahead of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, defending with precision. Lewis Hamilton’s move on George Russell demonstrated his determination to fight for a top-three finish, as he pulled away from Oscar Piastri and began to chase down the Ferraris ahead.
However, his charge was soon hindered by the superior race pace of Verstappen and Norris, as well as Leclerc’s strong performance on the soft compound tyres. Despite the setback, Lewis Hamilton maintained strong consistency, avoiding errors and keeping his position secure in the top five.
Radio frustration and Ferrari’s tactical decisions
Midway through the race, Lewis Hamilton’s communication with his race engineer Riccardo Adami revealed the intensity of the battle inside the cockpit. The Briton reported understeer and asked for insights about Charles Leclerc’s balance on the soft tyres, hoping to optimize his setup for the final stint. The Briton’s race engineer confirmed Ferrari’s decision to switch to the softs, prompting Hamilton to box on lap 32.
The radio exchanges highlighted Lewis Hamilton’s analytical approach and teamwork, as he sought every marginal gain available. Yet, even after switching to fresher tyres, he struggled to close the gap to Leclerc and Norris, who were managing their pace efficiently at the front. His experience allowed him to keep his composure, but frustration crept in during the final laps as he acknowledged over the radio that he “had nothing left” to challenge the drivers ahead. Adami reassured him that he was still pulling away from Piastri, underlining the consistency of his drive despite the limitations of the SF-25.
A missed podium, but a major step forward for Ferrari
Although Lewis Hamilton narrowly missed his first Ferrari podium, the result represented an important milestone for both the driver and the team. Ferrari scored a total of 36 points across the weekend — nine from the Sprint and twenty-seven from Sunday’s Grand Prix — closing the gap to Mercedes to just seven points in the Constructors’ Championship. Red Bull Racing remains slightly ahead, but the difference has become smaller, reflecting Ferrari’s strong momentum heading into the final five rounds of the season.
After the race, Hamilton emphasized that the weekend’s outcome was a “great result” for the team. He praised the performance of the car and the strategic execution, pointing out that finishing third and fourth ahead of both Mercedes drivers and one McLaren was a significant achievement. Despite the frustration of not reaching the podium, Hamilton viewed the race as a step in the right direction, noting that the team had extracted the most from a package that had not received major upgrades in recent events.
Hamilton admits strategy hurt his podium chances
Reflecting on the race strategy, Hamilton acknowledged that his tyre choice may have played a role in missing out on the podium. He noted that before Leclerc’s pit stop, the two Ferraris were closely matched, but after his own stop, the gap had grown to around ten seconds — too large to recover on similar pace. Despite that, Hamilton underlined how the performance level of the SF-25 was far better than expected given the team’s limited development focus in recent weeks.
He admitted that while luck wasn’t entirely on his side, Ferrari’s overall progress was undeniable. The seven-time champion remains confident that a podium finish is within reach in the upcoming races if the team continues refining its race execution and strategy calls.
Resilience pays off despite late drama
In the closing laps, Hamilton faced a minor issue with one of his tyres that almost cost him fourth place to Oscar Piastri. Nonetheless, he managed to bring the car home safely and avoided the kind of post-race penalties that had previously ruined his results earlier in the season. It was a testament to his resilience and maturity — two traits that have become defining characteristics of his time at Ferrari.
Looking ahead to Mexico
With Ferrari now closing in on Mercedes and Red Bull in the championship, the focus shifts to the Mexican Grand Prix, a circuit where Ferrari has often performed strongly. Lewis Hamilton’s steady adaptation to the SF-25 and his increasingly synchronized teamwork with Charles Leclerc suggest that the Maranello team’s first double podium of the season may be just around the corner.
While Hamilton’s search for that first Ferrari podium continues, his consistency and leadership have already had a tangible impact on the team’s morale and competitiveness. The Austin weekend was a reminder that Ferrari, under Fred Vasseur’s leadership, is steadily building a foundation to challenge for victories again — and the seven-time Formula 1 world champion remains central to that ambition.
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