A remarkable turn-around to the highly positive pre-season chatter that stemmed from Ferrari's headquarters in Maranello where Hamilton was presented as the Scuderia's newest acquisition.

But for all the positive sensations the collaboration between the brand and the driver conveyed, the myriad of setbacks has soured their first F1 season together, which reached a new low for both team and driver, as Hamilton completed his first podium-less season in his 19-year-long career, the first time for a Ferrari driver in the last 44 years - Hamilton's racing number - when Didier Pironi failed to break into the top 3 in the 1981 season.

After the race where he fought back to P8 having started P16 he said he wanted to 'go off the grid', and that he would 'throw his phone in the bin' to do so. When asked what it felt like to 'disconnect', Hamilton admitted to having never done that. "I'll find out when I do it," he told GPblog"But yeah, I can't wait to get away from all this. Every week, photo shoots and all that kind of stuff. Just that's the thing I look forward to one day, not having to do it all," added Hamilton, candidly, about his F1 retirement.

Hamilton, after the Qatar Grand Prix commented on the impact the F1 media's coverage of his and Ferrari's 2025 season had on the team's staff - which team principal Frederic Vasseur downplayed.

When asked for his thoughts on newly-crowned F1 champion Lando Norris' comments on mental health, Hamilton replied: "I don't know, I can't really comment, I don't know what he said, so I can't really say much.

Given the lack of his results, coupled with his struggles to adapt to the 2025 Ferrari car, F1 pundits have raised the question if Hamilton, given his 40 years of age, should start thinking about retiring from the sport, ex-F1 driver and former Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg included.

When as for a response to his detractors, he said: I wouldn't say anything to them. None of them have done what I've done. They're not even on my level."

Hamilton then elaborated on what continues to drive him, what keeps him committed to F1, and his reply heavily suggested he's not yet done with the sport.

"It's the love for what you do," he said. "It's the love for racing, it's the amazing support from the people around me, my fans, it's that constant, you know?

"Keeping an eye on the dream, I still have a dream that I hold hope in my heart for, and that's what I want to achieve," Hamilton concluded.

Maurizio Arrivabene, former team boss at the Scuderia Ferrari F1 outfit said he isn’t sure he would have signed Hamilton, issuing a subtle reality check Ferrari's way. Read more

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