Hamilton: Ferrari simulator usage remains a mystery
We have been discussing it for several days now: the version of Lewis Hamilton seen in Canada is the one that most closely resembles the driver who dominated during the pre-ground-effect Mercedes era, the same Lewis Hamilton who was among Formula 1’s benchmark performers up until the end of 2021.
Since 2022, however, the technical landscape of Formula 1 has changed dramatically. Mercedes no longer enjoyed the dominant position it once held, and perhaps more importantly, Lewis Hamilton never appeared to establish a complete connection with the new generation of ground-effect cars.
A move to Ferrari was expected to offer a fresh sporting challenge and perhaps a career revival. Yet during the 2025 season, the final year of the ground-effect regulations, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion encountered significant difficulties. Those struggles were linked both to an uncompetitive car and to the challenge of adapting to a completely new environment within the Scuderia.
The situation appears different in 2026. A new regulatory era, a full year of Ferrari experience behind him and the arrival of a new race engineer, Carlo Santi, who replaced Riccardo Adami, seem to have helped restore confidence and stability to the British driver. Hamilton and Adami never appeared to develop a particularly strong working relationship, making the engineering change one of the most closely watched developments within the team.
Canada delivered the best Hamilton of the Ferrari era
In North America, Lewis Hamilton looked comfortable, competitive and fully in control. He was strong in both qualifying and race conditions, showing a level of confidence that had often been missing during his first months with Ferrari.
Before arriving in Canada, the Ferrari driver was coming off a disappointing Miami Grand Prix weekend. Hamilton himself had explained that during the forced break caused by international tensions in the Middle East, he spent considerable time working on Ferrari’s simulator. According to the British driver, that simulator work ultimately led him in the wrong direction when defining the car’s setup.
As a result, he chose to approach the Montreal weekend with a completely different philosophy. Simulator work was reduced to a minimum, if not eliminated altogether, while greater trust was placed in the feedback gathered directly from the track.
The results appeared to justify that decision. Despite having only a single free practice session available because of the Sprint format, Lewis Hamilton managed to be competitive from the outset and looked significantly more effective than Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque, by contrast, followed the team’s traditional simulator preparation programme but struggled to find the ideal setup balance throughout the weekend.
The simulator story remains shrouded in mystery
The growing discussion surrounding Hamilton’s apparent lack of simulator usage has generated considerable attention, perhaps even more than the facts currently justify. In some cases, the story has taken on almost mythical proportions within the Formula 1 paddock.
Speaking on the High Performance podcast, former Ferrari engineer Rob Smedley revealed that he had attempted to gather information from contacts within Maranello to determine whether it was really true that Hamilton had not used Ferrari’s simulator, often referred to internally as the “spider.”
According to Smedley, however, Ferrari provided no answers. The reaction from inside the team was reportedly limited to shrugs and silence. Nobody confirmed the story, but equally nobody denied it.
That response may indirectly strengthen the theory that Lewis Hamilton has indeed adopted a different preparation method. Ferrari, for its part, has chosen not to offer further explanations, likely to avoid discussing potential technical issues that remain entirely unconfirmed.
As a result, the mystery continues.
Lewis Hamilton remains committed to following his own path, and attention is now turning to the Monaco Grand Prix, a circuit where confidence and driver feel arguably matter more than at any other venue on the Formula 1 calendar.
It is reasonable to assume that Hamilton may once again have limited his simulator programme and instead chosen to rely primarily on his instincts and on-track sensations as he attempts to outperform Charles Leclerc.
The challenge will not be easy. Charles Leclerc has traditionally excelled on the streets of Monte Carlo and will be determined to deliver another memorable result in front of his home crowd. The Monegasque driver is also aiming to help Ferrari secure its first victory of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
That objective appears well within the capabilities of the SF-26. Several rival teams have already identified Ferrari as the leading favourite heading into the Monaco Grand Prix, believing the characteristics of the Principality circuit could perfectly suit the strengths of the Maranello package.
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