After the long April break, Lewis Hamilton arrives in Miami riding the wave of encouraging results from the opening phase of the season, even though they were slightly overshadowed by a Japanese Grand Prix in which he appeared less competitive than in the previous two rounds. It is precisely the Suzuka race, where the Ferrari driver had complained about a power deficit compared to his direct rivals, that has remained at the forefront of the seven-time world champion’s thoughts, as he spent the break carefully analyzing the root causes of the issues he encountered in the most recent race.
In his first interview of the weekend in Florida, Lewis Hamilton explained how he spent the past month, which was anything but a holiday: “I’ve been in the simulator pretty much every week, I’ve been at the factory every week, and I’ve done a lot of training and preparation, revisiting the first three races and especially the last one, trying to understand.”
Speaking about the Suzuka problems, the Ferrari driver added: “I left the circuit feeling like we were lacking power. It wasn’t the engine, but there were certain things — a combination of factors — that were costing me up to eight or nine tenths per lap. We’ve fixed those things and moved past them. Now, with the regulation changes, it will be interesting to see what difference they make.”
The challenge of upgrades
Miami marks the beginning of another championship within the championship: the development race. More than ever this season, the first under the new regulations that have revolutionized both the cars and the power units, updates can have a massive impact on the competitive order. Ferrari arrives in Florida with several intriguing innovations, most notably the long-awaited debut of the “Macarena” rear wing.
“First of all, I’m really grateful for all the hard work that’s been done,” Hamilton said on the topic. “I’ve been back at the factory every week during this break and I’ve seen just how hard the team has worked to bring this upgrade together. There’s an enormous amount of work behind building these components and the level of quality that goes into them. So I’m incredibly grateful to everyone working at the factory for this.”
Charles Leclerc has expressed caution about the possibility that the upgrades brought by most teams to Miami could significantly reshuffle the competitive order, and Hamilton clearly outlined why it is so difficult for those chasing to close the gap to the leaders: “I think there is a gap in terms of power compared to Mercedes. To close that gap, we need to develop at double the rate of the others, which is a really tough task. You have to assume that everyone is developing at a similar pace because these are new regulations. So if one team gains a tenth, we need to gain two. If they gain two, we need three or four. That’s a huge amount. We have to keep pushing as hard as we can to eventually close the gap on the engine side.”
What gives Hamilton confidence is above all the way Ferrari has evolved its working methods after the difficulties he encountered last season: “We’ve made a lot of changes, and the way we work together now is the best I’ve ever experienced. The direction is the right one and we have to build step by step. We know it will take time, but I’m convinced we can get to the front.”
Rain as a potential ally
The enforced break was anything but a vacation for Ferrari, which also worked intensively on track to ensure it would be ready for the resumption of racing. The Briton, together with Charles Leclerc, took part in the filming day held at Monza last week, during which the SF-26 once again tested the “Macarena” rear wing that will be seen in action in Miami. However, the seven-time world champion downplayed the importance of those 200 kilometers — 100 each — completed at the Italian circuit: “I didn’t learn anything at Monza because it was a filming day.”
According to the British driver, the wet-weather testing carried out earlier with Pirelli at Fiorano could prove far more relevant. If rain does arrive on Sunday, as current forecasts suggest, it could turn into a valuable advantage: “I did two days of testing in the wet at Fiorano, so hopefully I’ll be in a good position if it rains on Sunday.”
Upgrades, weather, and more: another unknown hanging over the Miami weekend is represented by the regulatory tweaks approved by the FIA, which are expected to have a significant impact both on single-lap performance in qualifying — and in Florida there will be two opportunities to chase outright pace given the Sprint format — and on wheel-to-wheel battles during the race. “Regarding the regulation changes, it will be interesting to see what difference they make,” Lewis Hamilton concluded.
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