Lewis Hamilton comes clean on “more intense” environment at Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton revealed that working at Ferrari is more "intense" than he initially expected it to be. He joined the team this season after spending over a decade at Mercedes.

His move to the Italian outfit was initially expected to be a difficult one, but he seemingly mixed in with the red colors quite easily. Behind all the photoshoots and track visits, however, he revealed that there was a distinct aspect of the team, which was quite different than what he initially thought it would be.

Hamilton revealed that the team's work at the factory is really impressive, and that the energy within is more "intense" than he thought it would be.

"It's not at all what I expected; it's more intense in so many areas," Lewis Hamilton told French outlet RTBF Actus. "I didn't expect that. I didn't think the team at the factory would be so impressive. I was expecting energy, but this... it's even more intense than I imagined."

The Ferrari crew is known for their pride and enthusiasm for the brand and the country the team belongs to, which Lewis Hamilton felt within the team.

"There's a huge sense of pride within this team. During a shoot last week, I had a big smile on my face the whole time. I love being in red! I look at the badge and I think, 'Wow!' It's Ferrari, I can't believe it. I still have to pinch myself, I think, 'I'm driving for Ferrari.' It's phenomenal," he added.

Although Hamilton has been impressed with Ferrari, his performance has been quite the opposite on the track. He has failed to score any podiums and has witnessed multiple early exits from qualifying sessions.

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Mercedes team boss backs Lewis Hamilton as he fails performing competitively with Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton remained quite disappointed after his performance at the 2025 F1 Hungarian Grand Prix. After an early qualifying exit, he even told the media that the team needs to change the driver, considering his teammate had put his SF-25 in pole position.

The race ended for him in P12, which wasn't much of an improvement. Considering Ferrari is battling for the second place in the Constructors' Championship currently, every single point is precious to the team, and Charles Leclerc has been scoring the most of them.

While Hamilton was dejected after his performance, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff mentioned that it is quite normal for him. Wolff mentioned that the 7x World Champion has always been transparent with his emotions, and that he just needs to remind himself that he is the "greatest of all time."

"He's emotionally transparent since he was a young boy and adult, so he is going to beat himself up. He is the GOAT, and he will always be the GOAT, and nobody is going to take that away, and for sure not a single weekend or race season that has not gone to plan," Wolff said, via RacingNews365.

He added:

"It is something that he needs to remember, that he is the greatest of all time."

While the first half of the season hasn't been very competitive for Lewis Hamilton, he is expected to improve in the remaining 10 races after the summer break. Mercedes could threaten Ferrari's second position in the championship standings if the Maranello-based outfit doesn't improve its performance on the track.