“There is a simple rule: these champions perform when they have the right car. Otherwise, someone who has won seven world championships is hardly interested in fighting for fourth place.”
With those words, veteran journalist Pino Allievi summed up Lewis Hamilton’s return to victory in Barcelona, a historic first win for Ferrari that has effectively reignited the Scuderia’s Formula 1 title ambitions.
Speaking on the latest FormulaPassion.it Q&A podcast, Allievi took an in-depth look at the rebirth of the seven-time world champion, whose near-perfect performance in Spain allowed him to dominate the race and comfortably beat the Mercedes drivers.
A different Lewis Hamilton compared to 2025
“I did not expect such a sudden resurrection from Lewis Hamilton, but it is important to clarify what we said and wrote throughout 2025. Nobody ever criticised Lewis Hamilton himself; if anything, we criticised his performances, because he was the first to say: ‘I’m not good enough, I should stop, I’m leaving,’ and so on,” explained Allievi.
“The moment Lewis Hamilton got the car, he became Lewis Hamilton again. We could see it from the very first race because he was driving in a completely different way. In Australia he was immediately competitive despite qualifying only seventh, but it was clear that he felt comfortable with the car. Then we went to China and he was immediately quicker than Charles Leclerc.
“He rediscovered himself, but he rediscovered himself thanks to the car. If it had been an Aston Martin, we would probably have said that Lewis Hamilton was ready to walk away because, unlike Fernando Alonso, he is someone who can let go. Fernando Alonso keeps fighting even when he is battling at the back of the field, while Lewis Hamilton has every justification not to do that.”
Despite that observation, Pino Allievi stressed that Hamilton’s return to form was not solely down to Ferrari’s technical progress: “Apart from that, he is extremely serious, a great athlete, and like all great athletes he worked on himself, even though that is a phrase I do not particularly like. He isolated himself, prepared extensively from a physical standpoint and did everything a champion should do to arrive at the start of the season in the best possible condition.
“Then, when he arrived at the first race, he also found the car. The partnership that makes a champion extraordinary came together again.”
Retirement at the end of 2025? Many in Maranello would have welcomed it…
Looking back at 2025, the subdued version of Lewis Hamilton seen only a few months ago had sparked endless speculation about a possible early retirement from Formula 1. During that period, Oliver Bearman repeatedly expressed his readiness to make the leap to Ferrari should an opportunity arise.
“Knowing Lewis Hamilton’s character, I never believed in the possibility of an early retirement,” said Pino Allievi. “However, it is true that many of the people who had supported him when he was signed eventually stopped believing in him. Like everyone else, they thought Lewis Hamilton was no longer the driver he once was. So if, at the end of last season, Lewis Hamilton had said: ‘Guys, thank you, it has been a wonderful year in red, but now I’m leaving,’ many people in Maranello would have been happy.”
According to Pino Allievi, very few people expected the scale of the comeback that followed: “Why? Because nobody imagined a recovery like this. To be honest, perhaps not even Lewis Hamilton himself. Yet he was probably the only one who truly believed in himself.
“We are talking about super champions here, not ordinary champions. When Michael Schumacher returned to racing, he only had the right car on a couple of occasions. And when that happened, he became Michael Schumacher again. Yes, in his own way, perhaps with a few overly aggressive moments. But that is what champions are like.”
Hamilton’s Barcelona victory has dramatically changed the narrative surrounding his Ferrari adventure. After months of doubts and questions about his future, the seven-time world champion has reminded the Formula 1 paddock why he remains one of the most successful and respected drivers in the history of the sport.
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