Lewis Hamilton’s first season in Ferrari red has turned into the steepest descent of his glittering Formula One career, leaving the seven-time world champion searching for answers ahead of the Italian Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s move to Maranello was supposed to rekindle Ferrari’s long-dormant dream of a world champion in scarlet, ending an 18-year drought.
Instead, the 40-year-old sits nearly 200 points adrift of runaway leader Oscar Piastri, without a single podium finish to his name this season.
Last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix was emblematic of Ferrari’s misery: Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc both crashed out, the Briton having already spun twice in practice.
To compound matters, Hamilton was hit with a five-place grid penalty at Monza for failing to slow under yellow flags.
Still, Hamilton insists he relishes being part of Ferrari folklore. “It’s really special to remember that I’m a Ferrari driver every time I come to Italy,” he told Sky Italia. At a fan event near Milan’s Gothic cathedral, Hamilton and Leclerc were mobbed by supporters – a reminder of the passion Ferrari still commands, even in lean years.
“I saw with Charles what the atmosphere is like when you win at Monza with Ferrari,” Hamilton said, recalling Leclerc’s 2023 triumph. “Winning here with another team is incredible, but doing it in red must be something else.”
For now, Ferrari’s duo are little more than a sideshow in a season dominated by McLaren.
Between them, Piastri and Lando Norris have claimed 12 of 15 races, including the last five in succession, with McLaren securing seven one-two finishes.
Piastri, who has scored points in every race, leads Norris by 34 after the Briton’s car failed in Zandvoort. “I can still win the championship without anything happening to Oscar,” Norris said Thursday. “That’s the way I want to do it. May the best man win.”
Even Max Verstappen, the reigning three-time champion, has been powerless to stop McLaren’s charge.
A 104-point gap to Piastri suggests his streak of four consecutive titles is nearing its end. “I just try to make the best of it,” Verstappen admitted, eyeing Monza, where he has won twice.
With 249 points still up for grabs – including sprint races – the championship remains mathematically open.
But Piastri’s consistency and McLaren’s supremacy make him the overwhelming favorite to deliver the team’s first drivers’ crown since 2008, the same year Ferrari last celebrated a constructors’ title.
