Over 1,000 fans descended on Fiorano to watch Hamilton’s first Ferrari laps in an older car as he began to get used to their machinery.
It has been 19 years since the team last had a seven-time champion driving for them, just before Michael Schumacher retired from Formula 1 for the first time.
Hamilton brings a lot of experience to Ferrari and has been hired with the aim of helping them to win either the Drivers’ Championship or maybe the Constructors’ too.
Charles Leclerc hasn’t been able to bring home any success in the six years he has spent with the Italian team.
Now it’s up to Hamilton to change Ferrari F1 drivers for good and bring silverware to a team that hasn’t managed one of the two big trophies for 17 years.
Peter Windsor thinks Hamilton will find Ferrari tougher than Mercedes now that he is paired up alongside Leclerc and not George Russell.
The Monegasque driver is one of the premiere qualifiers on a Saturday, which was a weakness of Hamilton’s last year.
The Brit will want to avoid being embarrassed by his new teammate, placing emphasis on his preparation over the next two months before his debut at the Australian Grand Prix.
Riccardo Ceccarelli thinks that Hamilton is similar to Schumacher in his approach to colleagues and that being a little cold could be the recipe for success.
“You can’t be close to 1,000 people, you are close to those who share the work with you so Michael has always been a person, in fact, everyone at Ferrari loved him and continues to love him,” he said.
“Because although he is very determined, demanding and in some cases cold. But very respectful of the team. So Michael in my opinion is closer to the figure of Hamilton.”
Hamilton’s first Ferrari laps were slower than Leclerc or Schumacher’s records but he was driving in damp conditions on a fairly cold day.
It wasn’t about finding speed immediately, but more about giving him the opportunity to adapt to their processes and how they operate in the garage.
He has spent his time at the factory meeting the team and working in the simulator so far in a bid to register as much running as possible before he hits the track in a serious setting.
Ferrari faces an additional obstacle for Hamilton’s 2025 car after deciding to completely resign their machine.
It means they have abandoned a concept which nearly led them to a title last year, in hopes of achieving even more.
