Lewis Hamilton in 2025: A tricky start to life in red
12 December 2025- Drivers’ standings: 6th
- Points: 156
- Best finish: 4th x4
- Best qualifying: 3rd
- Podiums: 0
Few moves have shaken Formula 1 quite like Lewis Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari for 2025. The seven-time world champion arrived in Maranello with enormous expectation and a fanbase eager to see history unfold. But as the year played out, Hamilton’s first campaign in red proved more challenging than anyone anticipated.
Early hopes and a rollercoaster start
The opening rounds set the tone for a season of adaptation. In Melbourne, Hamilton managed only eighth in qualifying before taking tenth in the race, still searching for confidence in the SF-25.
Then came China, a weekend that briefly hinted at that old Hamilton magic. Lewis stunned the paddock by taking Sprint pole and converting it into a dominant victory. For a moment, it looked as if his Ferrari chapter was coming to life exactly as fans had imagined.
But after a difficult Grand Prix in which he slipped to sixth, he was disqualified when his car failed a plank-wear check – a deflating end to a weekend that had promised so much.
Finding his feet while chasing his team-mate
Japan and Bahrain offered solid returns with seventh and fifth, respectively, while Jeddah brought another seventh. Miami was another mixed weekend: third in the Sprint, eighth in the Grand Prix.
Yet through it all, a clear gap emerged between Hamilton and team-mate Charles Leclerc, who was able to step onto the podium in Saudi Arabia – a challenge Lewis would have to overcome.
The mid-season grind
The European leg of the season kicked off a run of points-paying finishes and a steadier rhythm – even if the breakthrough result continued to hover just out of reach. Imola marked his first Italian outing in Ferrari red, and he rose to the occasion with a recovery drive from 12th to fourth place.
Monaco proved trickier. A three-place grid drop for impeding Verstappen left him on the back foot, and despite wrestling with a Ferrari he still didn’t fully trust, he salvaged fifth.
Spain offered more frustration – for the first time, he started a Grand Prix inside the top five. But it was undone by a slow pit stop, leaving him to fight back to seventh, before later being promoted to sixth.
In Canada, he delivered another solid fifth place, even after an unfortunate encounter with a groundhog damaged his SF-25.
And in Austria, Hamilton’s consistency shone once again – briefly inheriting the lead as strategies unfolded before bringing the Ferrari home in fourth.
A whisper of magic at Silverstone
Few circuits carry more meaning for Hamilton than Silverstone, and hope flickered early. He topped FP1 and again set the pace in Q2, eventually taking fifth on the grid – and, more importantly, finally feeling at one with the Ferrari.
But the British Grand Prix unravelled in the changing conditions. Strategy misjudgements and an unpredictable car left him battling uphill, and although he charged after Nico Hülkenberg late on, his bid for a 13th home podium slipped narrowly away, finishing just shy in fourth.
Weathering the storm in Europe
In Belgium, he started both the Sprint and the Grand Prix from a distant 18th, clawing his way to 15th on Saturday before a bold early switch to slicks paid off and saw him charge through the field to seventh on Sunday.
The Hungaroring is another track where both Lewis and his fans expect big things, but Budapest brought contrasting fortunes, delivering his first Grand Prix finish outside the top ten all season in a weekend where nothing quite clicked.
Zandvoort then dealt the toughest blow yet, ending in heartbreak as a rare mistake sent him into the barriers.
But he bounced back at Monza, lifted by the roar of the Tifosi, carving his way from 10th on the grid to a determined sixth.
Taking on the streets
Any hopes of his momentum building through the autumn quickly met reality on the streets of Baku and Singapore. In Azerbaijan, a long opening stint hinted at a late push, but the pace never quite came to him.
Despite narrowing the gap in the closing stages, he couldn’t mount a challenge on Lando Norris and crossed the line in eighth, short of what the Ferrari had threatened earlier in the weekend.
Singapore offered no respite. After slipping behind his team-mate Charles Leclerc in the early stages, Hamilton’s race began to unravel as brake issues surfaced. He fought to the flag but could do no better than eighth again.
A mixed bag in the Americas
Hamilton’s tour of the Americas delivered flashes of promise wrapped in layers of frustration. Austin was the clear highlight, with the seven-time champion showing real bite as he delivered fourth in both the Sprint and the Grand Prix, matching the car’s potential and hinting at more to come.
Mexico offered a similar sense of what might have been after a brilliant run to third in qualifying, however, he slipped back to eighth on Sunday after being handed a 10-second time penalty for gaining a lasting advantage during his battle with Max Verstappen.
While he still banked valuable points, the coveted podium still stayed at arm’s reach.
Contact and damage on the opening lap of the Brazilian Grand Prix put him to the rear of the pack, before Ferrari retired him early on Lap 40. It was a tough blow after a weekend where he could only manage 13th in qualifying while his team-mate lined up in third.
A final three to forget
The season’s final triple-header didn’t improve on the themes that defined Lewis’ season, as a disastrous qualifying session saw him start last in Las Vegas. However, he produced a trademark recovery drive to tenth, but was elevated to eighth in the wake of McLaren’s double disqualification.
Another difficult qualifying followed in Qatar, which saw him start 17th. In the race, he was the victim of a double stack under the Safety Car, which fed him out into the midfield. After gaining a couple of positions late on, he finished the penultimate race of the year 12th.
Starting 16th after his third Q1 knockout in a row in Abu Dhabi, he made progress in the opening laps and made use of an early stop to undercut a portion of the midfield. A second stop dropped him back down the order, but he sliced through the field again to finish eighth.
Down but not out
For the first time in his illustrious career, Lewis Hamilton ended a Formula 1 season without a single podium. He also became the first Ferrari driver in 44 years to go an entire year without standing on the rostrum.
The statistics stung, and Hamilton did not shy away from calling 2025 the toughest season of his career. Yet beneath the frustration lay the unmistakable signs of a driver still fighting for every inch, still capable of brilliance, and still determined to write a very different chapter in 2026.
