Superstar Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari: his future has long been decided

Lewis Hamilton 2025: a man on the verge of retirement. The most successful Formula 1 driver was almost driven to despair by his Ferrari, having been overshadowed by Charles Leclerc. One or two experts, such as former world champion Jenson Button, put it bluntly but fairly: “Perhaps Lewis’s time is up.”

Lewis Hamilton 2026: a man who sends all retirement rumours packing. The most successful Formula 1 driver is on first-name terms with his new race car; this time, it is the Monegasque Leclerc who comes off second best.

And what, then, of the “multi-year contract” that Ferrari had signed with the seven-time world champion? Hamilton spoke plainly on the matter in Canada.

Lewis in Montreal: “Regardless of the fact that some people are writing me off as having retired, my head is completely clear. I’m committed to Ferrari, I’m dedicated to this team, I have unshakeable plans, I know exactly what I want, and not a single thought of mine revolves around retirement. I’ll be here for a very long time yet – you’d better get used to it.”

During the Silverstone Grand Prix weekend, my colleague Daniel Sparisci from the Corriere della Sera sat down for a chat with Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur. Among many other topics, the conversation naturally had to turn to Lewis Hamilton.

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The French Ferrari team principal says: “In 2025, I had underestimated the scale of the transition from the Mercedes world to the Ferrari world; everything was new to Hamilton, and Lewis isn’t one of those drivers who changes teams every two or three years, like Carlos Sainz, for example. Now, however, Lewis knows the tools, the people and our approach inside out. And with the good results, he’s entered a positive spiral.”

“We also brought Lewis in because of the experience he brings with him. And that’s paying off.”

And then, almost in passing, Sparisci asks: “Can we announce it then: Hamilton will stay on in 2027 as well?” After all, Ferrari had never said as much before. And Vasseur replies crisply: “Yes.”

Did the “intensive work with Ferrari in 2025” (Hamilton on Hamilton) lead to a car that’s tailor-made for Lewis? Vasseur: “Pah, we don’t build F1 cars tailor-made for one driver or another. At most, the cars can be developed according to the drivers’ specifications; their input is important, but we’re talking about marginal differences here.”

Lewis Hamilton has hinted that the mission to win the World Championship with Ferrari will be seen through to the end, even if it takes longer than initially expected. What Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel failed to achieve, and what Michael Schumacher most recently succeeded in doing with Ferrari, is what Lewis Hamilton also wants – to lead Ferrari to a new title as World Champion.

It therefore stands to reason to look beyond 2027 and probe further with Ferrari. But Vasseur dismissed this at Silverstone. Speaking on the subject at the FIA conference, he said: “Who has been talking about a contract extension? He is still under contract with us, and now is not the time to discuss an extension.”