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Ferrari star Lewis Hamilton started the 2025 Belgian GP from the pit lane but finished the race in P7 courtesy of some exceptional overtaking and a brilliant strategic call from the Scuderia. The radio messages between Hamilton and his engineer, which led to the strategic call, have now come to light.
Ferrari tested a new upgrade at Mugello the week before the Belgian GP and brought the same to Spa-Francorchamps. The upgrades included a new rear suspension and brakes. However, Hamilton struggled with the same on Friday (July 25) and Saturday, as he got eliminated in SQ1 for the Sprint race and Q1 for the main race.
The seven-time F1 champion qualified P16 for the main race but took the penalty for changing parts after parc ferme and started the race from pitlane (which effectively became P18 as it was a rolling start after multiple laps under safety car).
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Lewis Hamilton made multiple overtakes in the wet conditions and was on the fringes of the Top 10 when the track started drying out. Hamilton was the first driver to pit for a set of slick tires and gained six positions from the strategic call alone.
However, as the radio messages between the Brit and his engineer Ricciardo Adami come to light (via Racefans), it's revealed that Hamilton was opposed to the idea of pitting for slick tires but eventually changed his mind.
“You think to stop for slicks now, new medium?” said Adami on Lap 11.
“No way,” replied Hamilton.
However, as the lap progressed, Lewis Hamilton changed his mind as he said,
“It’s not far, some places, but it’ll be very [unclear] slick. Very close, for sure. I’m down to try if you want.”
As Hamilton claimed that his intermediate tires were dropping off, his race engineer instructed him to pit.
“Yeah, probably go to medium though. I’ve got a little too much front wing,” said Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton got up to P7 and spent the remainder of the race chasing Alex Albon, but wasn't able to pass the Williams driver.
Fred Vasseur's reaction to Lewis Hamilton's strategy at the Belgian GP
Lewis Hamilton was the first driver to pit onto the slicks despite the track being wet in some parts. Yet the gains in other sections where the track was dry were immense. Fred Vasseur detailed how a new set of intermediates was an option, but the same was scrapped by the team. Explaining the thought process behind the slick strategy, he said (via Autosport):
“The situation is that we were degrading the inter a lot and we were far away from the crossover [where slicks become faster] just because the inters were a disaster – they were completely gone. You put on a new set of inters, you are also six seconds faster. But I think it was the right call at the right moment – a bit aggressive.”
“It meant that we did it with Lewis, and I think it was the right call at the right lap,” added Vasseur.
Hamilton revealed that the issues from the sprint qualifying regarding the rear brakes were resolved by the team coming into the race. His teammate Charles Leclerc took the final spot on the podium.
