Hamilton at Ferrari: the verdict so far

Lewis Hamilton began his second Ferrari season with, in his words, "a lot of people that are trying to retire me". Seventeen rounds in, he has a win in red, six grand prix podiums and third place in the championship at 41. He has also just thrown away a podium in Singapore with a call he admits was his. So which Hamilton is the real one?

Where he started

Context first. Hamilton's debut year at Maranello was the worst of his career on paper: sixth in the championship on 156 points, 86 behind Charles Leclerc, and not a single grand prix podium, the first season of his career without one. His best result all year was fourth.

Ferrari made changes on his side of the garage, with race engineer Riccardo Adami stepping aside and Carlo Santi taking over on an interim basis, and Hamilton cut back on simulator work he felt was sending him the wrong way. By round two in China he had his first grand prix podium in red.

The highs

Barcelona was the moment. On a scorching June afternoon, Ferrari started Hamilton on softs, committed to three stops and timed a virtual safety car perfectly, and he beat George Russell by 19.5 seconds. It was his first win for Ferrari at the 31st attempt, his first grand prix win in nearly two years, the 106th of his career, and it ended Mercedes' unbeaten start to the season. "I watched Ferrari have all their success on TV when I was younger and wondered what it would be like to win in this car," he said.

Other days have shown the old Hamilton. Second in Canada and Monaco, third at Silverstone. At Sepang he gambled on slicks on a wet track, fell to 17th, nearly a minute behind the leaders, and carved back to third in a drive BBC Sport called extraordinary. Every grand prix he has finished this year, he has finished in the top six.

And the team-mate comparison, the one that hurt so much in 2025, has swung his way. Hamilton leads Leclerc 229 points to 215. By our count from the official results he has finished ahead of him in nine grands prix to Leclerc's eight, while Leclerc edges qualifying nine to eight.

The lows

The middle of the season was thin. After Silverstone in early July, Hamilton went six grands prix without a podium. He retired in Madrid, and at Monza he lost six places on the opening lap when Leclerc pushed him wide at the first chicane, eventually finishing sixth.

Then came Singapore. Hamilton qualified third, started on mediums while Max Verstappen and Leclerc chose softs, and was the first front-runner to pit. Stuck behind his team-mate on fresher tyres, he told the pit wall "I need to use this speed, mate", but Ferrari kept the order. When the virtual safety car came out on lap 39, Ferrari called both cars in. Leclerc pitted. Hamilton did not, and on fading softs he lost three places in the closing laps to finish sixth.

Exactly what happened in the cockpit is still a little murky. A radio fault meant none of Hamilton's messages around the VSC made it to air, and The Race noted he made no obvious attempt to get into the pit lane. Fred Vasseur's account wobbled: "One of my guys said, 'no, I prefer to stay on track'," and then, "He said, 'I missed the pit entry'. Don't blame the team." Hamilton's statement said he missed the entry and then decided to stay out and hold track position.

To his credit, he owned it straight away. "Sorry, boys. I let you down today with that strategy. My call, and I lost us valuable points. I'll try and make up for it in the next one," he said on the radio after the flag. In his statement he called it "a painful lesson, but I take full responsibility for the decisions I made". Vasseur's verdict was simple: "I think it was a mistake overall – we would've gone for P2 and P3 today."

The Vasseur question

All this has landed in the middle of a row about who runs Ferrari. Promoting his book, former Red Bull boss Christian Horner told The Times: "Ferrari is the biggest brand in Formula 1. It's the dream. And arguably it's the sleeping giant of Formula 1." Vasseur's reply after Baku was pointed: "Mr Horner is looking for a job - that everybody knows - everywhere." Ferrari then called a media briefing to back him. "There is confidence in Fred and his team. Nothing has changed," said chief communication officer Maria Conti, speaking for chairman John Elkann and chief executive Benedetto Vigna. Asked if he still believed in the direction under Vasseur, Hamilton said simply: "Yes."

Horner has since rowed back. "Fred Vasseur is an experienced guy. He's done a decent job," he told The Guardian, adding that any return would need an ownership stake: "Ferrari aren't going to sell shares." BBC Sport also points out that Hamilton has made it pretty clear over the years that he has little time for Horner.

Where it leaves him

Judge Hamilton on 2025 alone and he looked finished. Judge him on 2026 and he is third in the world at 41, ahead of his team-mate, with a win and six podiums in a Ferrari whose engine, according to BBC Sport, has fallen short of Mercedes and Red Bull. That is a proper season. He is under contract until at least the end of 2027 and has told his critics to "get used to it".

But Singapore matters, and not because of the points. If Hamilton is overruling the pit wall, or simply does not trust it, that is a bigger problem than one bad call. The Race's Josh Suttill wondered whether mistrust from Ferrari's past strategy errors had come back to bite. Our view: the relationship is fixable, and the fix is not another team principal. Changing the man at the top again, with Ferrari second in the constructors' standings and a 2027 car to build, would be the most Ferrari thing Ferrari could do.

Our verdictSeven out of ten, and rising. Hamilton's second Ferrari season has been a genuine success that he nearly spoiled with one decision. He has out-scored Leclerc, won a race and silenced the retirement talk. What he has not done is look like a champion in waiting. Bold call: Ferrari keep Vasseur, Hamilton finishes 2026 in the top three, and 2027 decides whether this partnership ends with a title or a shrug.

Sources: BBC Sport, Hamilton apologises to Ferrari as Antonelli moves to brink of title, Singapore GP report, Bahrain GP in Malaysia report, Singapore driver ratings, Ferrari back Vasseur and F1 Q&A on Horner and Ferrari; Formula1.com, Barcelona GP report, Hamilton apologises and Vasseur on the strategy call; Motorsport.com, Hamilton on his first Ferrari win, Hamilton "100% clear" on 2027 and Horner clears the air (quoting The Guardian); The Race, Why Hamilton's Singapore GP really imploded, Our verdict on Hamilton's Singapore strategy failure and Singapore GP report; Autosport, Bahrain GP in Malaysia report and Italian GP report; Sky Sports, Hamilton confirms contract until at least 2027; Jolpica-F1 results, qualifying and standings for 2025 and 2026 (head-to-head counts are ours). Facts as reported up to 13 October 2026; opinions are ours. See all headlines on the wire →