Hamilton restarts from P4
In the weeks leading up to the Australian GP, Lewis Hamilton showed optimism and confidence in Ferrari and his form. The seven-time world champion appeared rejuvenated by the holidays, after a 2025 closed in a listless manner. And in Melbourne, indeed, a highly motivated Sir Lewis was seen, much closer to Charles Leclerc: only six tenths – practically a lap considering the pace of the two Ferrari drivers – prevented him from reaching his first podium with Ferrari.
Read more McLaren seeks redemption in China: “We are working to better exploit the engine”
Hamilton was making his debut with new race engineer Carlo Santi. After a year of difficult collaboration with Riccardo Adami, the Englishman seemed much calmer on the radio (but it’s only the first race, it’s still very early to draw judgments). The Veronese encouraged him several times in the final stint, in which Hamilton was the fastest on track. Having reached the checkered flag, Santi let slip another comment that will motivate Hamilton ahead of China: the 15″ from George Russell are due to the missed pit stop under the Virtual Safety Car.
The team radio
Santi: “Fantastic race, very solid, the second stint was very fast. Russell P1, Antonelli P2, Charles P3 and we are P4“.
Hamilton: “Great job guys, really great job, I’m really proud of all the work done. Thanks to everyone back at the factory. Solid result, solid points. Let’s keep pushing“.
Santi: “Thank you, Lewis“.
Hamilton: “From P7 to P4 is good. How far ahead were they?“.
Santi: “15 seconds. Basically, it’s due to that pit stop“.
Hamilton: “Yes. We need to improve on that, mate“.
Santi: “In the last stint you were by far the fastest. And in the first one you were stuck behind Charles“.
Read more Porsche Cayenne S Electric, up to 666 hp of power
It should be noted that in the post-race statements, team principal Frederic Vasseur stated that the missed pit stop under VSC for Isack Hadjar’s engine failure did not change the direction of the GP. There remains a strong suspicion that Mercedes had much more pace to exploit, and that they would have finished ahead of Ferrari in any case.
