Lewis Hamilton's much-anticipated Ferrari debut at the Australian Grand Prix on March 16, 2025, ended with unexpected frustration and confusion. After switching to Ferrari following his long tenure at Mercedes, the seven-time world champion faced significant challenges during the race, culminating in a 10th-place finish.
Hamilton's start at Albert Park was far from smooth. He managed to qualify eighth, but the race took a turn for the worse partly due to Ferrari's strategic decisions involving tire choices. The team decided to keep both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc on slick tires longer than their competitors, which proved detrimental as rain began to fall with 13 laps remaining, dramatically altering the race conditions.
"It went a lot worse than I thought it would go," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1, expressing his dissatisfaction with the team's tactics. The rain, which intensified during the latter stages of the race, left Hamilton grappling to maintain control of his car on slick tires.
"The car was really hard to drive today," he added, reflecting on the difficulties he faced. "For me, I'm just grateful I kept it out of the wall because that's where it wanted to go most of the time."
During the race, Hamilton found himself stuck behind Alex Albon's Williams, managing little progress from his starting position. Race leader Lando Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri faced their own misfortunes, with Piastri eventually spinning off the track entirely.
Ferrari's strategy came under scrutiny when the team opted to leave Hamilton and Leclerc out on the slicks, hoping to survive the rain. By the time they decided to pit for intermediates, they had fallen from second and third positions to ninth and tenth after the stop. Hamilton's frustration was palpable when he noted on team radio, "I thought you said it wasn't going to rain much? We just missed a big opportunity there." Leclerc echoed similar sentiments with his own communication, illustrating the confusion within the team about the rain's timing and intensity.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur admitted post-race, "We made the wrong call because I think the best option was to pit the same lap as Max (Verstappen)." His remarks highlight the miscalculations made during the chaotic race conditions, where sector one and two remained dry, yet the third sector became significantly wet. Vasseur acknowledged, "It was a strange situation...a bet on staying out with slicks."
Adding to the turbulence, feedback about the anticipated weather conditions created disconnects within the team. Vasseur mentioned, "We were all surprised by the quantity of rain at this stage of the race," emphasizing the unpredictable nature of the situation. This unpredictability manifested not only on track but also over the communication lines between Hamilton and his new race engineer, Riccardo Adami.
Despite the frustrations, Hamilton expressed appreciation for Adami, stating his race engineer did the best he could under the circumstances. "I think Riccardo did a really good job. We're learning about each other bit by bit," Hamilton noted, indicating his intent to improve their collaboration moving forward.
Sky Sports F1 analyst Karun Chandhok commented on the need for Hamilton and Adami to build their communication bond. "They just need to build their bond. Race engineers and drivers will spend more time together than they do with their partners throughout the season," he remarked, highlighting the importance of developing mutual trust and clarity.
The task now is to find common ground, as Adami has worked with Carlos Sainz, and adapting to Hamilton's different communication style will take time.
With lessons learned from this turbulent debut, the Ferrari team is now heading to the next challenge: the Chinese Grand Prix, scheduled for later this week. The anticipation is high as the team looks to bounce back from these difficulties. Hamilton, who remains determined to find success at Ferrari, is focused on adapting to both his new car and the demands of racing with a new engineer.
The experience at Melbourne has not only tested the drivers but also the team's strategy and communication, setting the stage for adjustments as the season progresses. The F1 community remains eager to see how Ferrari responds and whether Hamilton can find his footing as they head to China for the first Sprint weekend of the season.