Hamilton is back: A legendary comeback that has stunned Formula 1

After the infamous 2021 season finale in Abu Dhabi, Hamilton was never truly at the top again. In the years that followed, he got a new teammate at Mercedes in George Russell, the car wasn’t good enough to win, and his spirits began to fade. When he was offered a 1+1 deal at the end of 2023, instead of a multi-year contract, the seven-time world champion chose the safer option.

Hamilton called Ferrari, and they were open to his arrival. There, a multi-year deal could be signed, so Hamilton left for Maranello for a new adventure. Given his final period at Mercedes, there was still little confidence that Hamilton could make a major sporting contribution there as well.

In 2025, those expectations seemed to come true. At 40 years old, it looked like the best was behind the Brit. At one point, he even stated that Ferrari should just replace him. The Scuderia, however, did not. Despite the many setbacks and the much better performances from the ‘cheap’ Leclerc, Fred Vasseur kept faith in his star.

That trust is finally paying off. Hamilton has increasingly done things his own way. For instance, he got a new race engineer this year, with whom he has a much better rapport than his previous one, Riccardo Adami. But the most important change may have come in Canada, where Hamilton revealed he had, for the first time, stopped using the simulator before race weekends.

While the new generation swears by the simulator, too often had it led Hamilton down the wrong path. Hamilton didn’t grow up with a sim and isn’t as connected with it as many of his younger rivals. That’s why he consciously relies on his own experience: what works on a circuit and what doesn’t. He passes that on to his team.

Still, there were, of course, internal doubts about Hamilton. The Briton himself stated at the Silverstone press conference that he had been like a bull in a china shop, but naturally didn’t have the results to prove he was right. Gradually, distrust starts to creep in within a team. That has now turned, as it appears Hamilton’s insights are indeed setting Ferrari on the right course.

Anyone looking at Hamilton’s underlying numbers will be blown away. While year-to-year dynamics rarely show large differences - except with young talents, logically - that’s exactly what’s happening at Ferrari now. Hamilton has made a huge leap and is now even better than Leclerc.

In Grand Prix qualifying, heading into the British GP it stands at 4-4, with a slight average advantage for Leclerc of 0.051s over the eight qualifying sessions completed. The one in Barcelona doesn’t count toward the average, as Leclerc hit the wall before he could set a time. In the races, Hamilton reigns supreme. It’s 6-2 in Hamilton’s favour there, with the Brit also scoring significantly more points in Grands Prix: 113-62.

In sprint weekends, Hamilton has truly shown his class this year. After Silverstone, sprint qualifying stands at 3-1 for Hamilton, with an average gap of one tenth. In the sprint races, it’s 3-0 for Leclerc, who finished ahead of Hamilton on-track in every event and thus scored slightly more points.

There’s a lot of praise for Kimi Antonelli - and rightly so - for what he’s achieving at 19 years old. Still, the reverse reasoning also applies. The fact that Hamilton is doing this at 41, and especially that he has managed to turn the tide after so many tricky years, deserves enormous credit. We’ll gladly accept his familiar post-pole spiel with thanks to the best fans in the world as part of the package.