Lewis Hamilton officially became a Ferrari driver on January 1st 2025, and it’s fair to say, the ride so far has been a bit of a bumpy one.
Not literally. Ferrari’s SF-25’s suspension system is doing its job. But in terms of Hamilton’s season, results have been far from favourable. Despite flashes of speed and potential, he has struggled to consistently challenge for podiums, with mechanical issues, tricky car balance, and adaptation to Ferrari’s setup contributing to a tough start.
It’s been an intense few months, and as time goes by, the competition is only getting tougher. So, where does this leave the racer? Well, let’s just say it’s not a good time to be behind the pack…
Over the last year, Formula 1 has experienced a boom in popularity and audience growth, with a 12% year-on-year increase as of mid-2025.
There are many reasons for this, including cross-platform exposure through video games – the latest F125 game has experienced a strong 27% year-on-year sales increase, while more casino games seem to be incorporating F1-themed content.
This is drawing in new fans who might not have engaged with the sport otherwise – esports, and streaming platforms that broadcast races globally, making it more accessible than ever.
But the bottom line is that F1 is doing better than ever, with record audience growth and engagement, and that means it’s a particularly bad time for any driver to be left out of the spotlight.
So what exactly has led to Hamilton saying this has ‘not been an enjoyable F1 season’? Let’s look at some key moments that have defined the first half of 2025, from challenging race starts to unexpected technical issues.
Chinese Grand Prix disqualification
Perhaps the biggest moment of Hamilton’s Ferrari career was his disqualification during the Chinese Grand Prix. This happened due to technical non-compliance with the SF-25, as post-race checks found that the car exceeded plank wear limits.
Hungarian Grand Prix struggles
During the Hungarian Grand Prix, Hamilton faced a difficult weekend, qualifying only 12th on the grid due to a combination of the SF-25’s tricky setup and difficult track conditions.
This left him with an uphill battle during the race, forcing him to fight through traffic and limiting his chances of scoring a podium finish.
British Grand Prix 4th place finish
There’s no doubt that the British Grand Prix was an overall improvement on Hamilton’s previous outings. He managed to secure a strong fourth-place finish, but if anything, this was just a frustrating example of how close he could get to the podium if he wasn’t held back by such small margins.
Belgian Grand Prix tyre issues
This frustration could also be seen in the Belgian Grand Prix, where tyre degradation issues lost Hamilton positions in the closing laps. Apparently, this was due to SF-25’s sensitivity to track temperature and compound wear, which caused the soft tyres to drop off faster than expected.
Canadian Grand Prix groundhog
Lastly, during the Canadian Grand Prix, Hamilton experienced a significant setback when he accidentally ran over a groundhog on Lap 12. The collision caused substantial damage to the right side of his SF-25’s floor, resulting in a loss of approximately 20 points of downforce.
This wasn’t his fault, of course, and these things happen. But it was indicative of his bad luck and how even minor, unpredictable events can derail a race weekend.
Conclusion
As we mentioned before, there have been bright sparks in 2025. But these are certainly key moments that haven’t helped in Hamilton’s quest to get back to the top.
If he is to rediscover his success and finish above his rivals in the championship standings, Ferrari will need to improve on the SF-25 and overcome these technical challenges, giving him the gear he needs to be the racer we all know he can be. Here’s hoping that the 2026 season sees this come to fruition!
