Is Lewis Hamilton back?
Two clues don’t make a proof yet, but they help to get an idea of the season that Lewis Hamilton is about to experience at the wheel of his second Ferrari. The 41-year-old Englishman, coming off a terrible 2025 championship, seems reborn and is undoubtedly much more aggressive and gritty than the faded champion we had seen in the car until a few months ago. And so, after the good performance in Melbourne, even in the Shanghai Sprint Race the seven-time world champion is among the undeniable protagonists, with a series of overtakes and counter-overtakes in the first laps with the dominant George Russell, and then with a final top-3 finish that bodes well for the rest of the weekend (and 2026).
Read more The Sprint shows Ferrari and Mercedes closer in the race
Words after the F1 Chinese GP Sprint Race
“Yes, the team did an exceptional job – explains Lewis Hamilton in the interviews of the top three drivers after the checkered flag of the Chinese GP Sprint Race – and it’s fantastic. I have to thank them so much for putting us in the position to be able to fight with the Mercedes up there. It was a close battle at the beginning, but their straight-line speed for the moment is a bit too much for us. I fought well, but I also killed my front left tire, so then I had to give up the position”.
There is also a comment on the overall situation of Scuderia Ferrari, which has certainly put itself in a much better position compared to the role of fourth force of the past Formula 1 season: “It seems to me a clearly better car in terms of how it was designed. I was part of this both in terms of the project and the development, so I am much happier. At one point today I even found myself in the lead, so finishing in third place is not great. But I will work harder in qualifying and even more tomorrow”.
Read more Antonelli: “At the start the turbo was missing, I compromised my race”
“At the beginning I found myself in the lead for the first time in a race – concludes Lewis Hamilton to the Sky microphones at the interview ring – but George was very fast, and I had to push way too much in the corners since they were very fast on the straight and therefore I totally lost the front left tire. We still have many things to learn and let’s see if we can make some setup changes”.
Read more Hadjar: “Antonelli ruined my Sprint, I don’t know why he’s so overexcited, he has a rocket”
