Lewis Hamilton’s tough start at Ferrari: facts and figures tell the story. Lewis Hamilton’s experience at Ferrari has been anything but smooth .

Ahead of 2025 there was much anticipation for the beginning of Lewis Hamilton’s adventure at Ferrari. The end of 2024 had raised hopes for this season, and the Leclerc–Hamilton pairing promised excitement. Instead, not only has the car turned out to be less competitive than expected, but the Briton is also struggling considerably to find the right feeling with the new car.

Lewis Hamilton’s first races as a Ferrari driver have not gone as expected. Even the victory in the Sprint Race at the Chinese GP seemed more like an isolated result. Otherwise, the results have not yet lived up to the preseason enthusiasm.

Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have encountered problems with the SF-25 this season. But while the Monegasque driver has found a path that is making him more comfortable with the car, driver #44 still appears lost.

“He’s a realist,” said David Coulthard to Channel 4. “That realism has made him one of the most successful drivers in the history of the sport, matched only by Michael Schumacher. But this continues to be an underperforming Lewis Hamilton.”

“Who am I to say this? I’m saying it based on data, on facts. He knows he needs more to get ahead of Charles,” continued the Scot.

Lewis Hamilton’s discouraging performances
The facts Coulthard refers to show that in the first five GPs of 2025, Hamilton has always finished behind Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. And this is true not just in terms of position, but also in terms of pace. In the last Saudi Arabian GP, the Briton crossed the finish line thirty seconds behind his teammate. – “Lewis is disheartened by the situation,” analyzed Billy Monger for Channel 4. “It was always going to take time to adapt to a new team after such a long period with Mercedes. The fact that Charles had a significant gap to the top three [in qualifying in Saudi Arabia] suggests that Ferrari was generally on the back foot. Lewis might be overly disappointed by that.”

“At the start of the season, Lewis’s story was important for everyone, in F1 and beyond. It was an iconic partnership. It’s a big disappointment,” he added. “At this point, you almost feel sorry for both sides. It’s not meeting expectations, which is very difficult, considering how much it was hyped.”