Hamilton hopes Ferrari 'alien' factor may soon be done away with

Although in Zandvoort Hamilton met an early demise to his Dutch Grand Prix, both himself and the team were positive due to the performance shown by the Briton throughout the weekend, managing to close the gap to teammate Charles Leclerc in qualifying as well as in the race.

In Italy Hamilton was able to lead Leclerc after the first practice session, albeit if in FP2 and FP3 the gap between them overturned in favour of the Monegasque. In qualifying the British driver was able to finish in P5 right behind his teammate in P4, and despite the enforced 5-place grid drop penalty Hamilton was able to quickly get on the pace, even besting Leclerc's speed.

After the race, the Briton highlighted the factors that are preventing him from completing a successful acclimatisation process with the Ferrari SF-25.

"I think what's clear for me is that, I know I've been driving this car all year long, but in my previous years I was a part of a car that you're evolving over time," he said to GPblog.

"You're comfortable with it, you know the driving style inside and out." For 12 years, Hamilton drove for Mercedes, becoming fully integrated with the German team's systems and the way to operate and drive the cars. A very different situation to that he's currently experiencing at Ferrari.

"This year I'm arriving at the track and having to apply this new driving style that is still alien to me," he added. "To me it doesn't feel natural, to a car that that's how it has to work."

During the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Hamilton uttered similar statements, referring to the Ferrari as a car that was 'alien' to him for the first time.

"To really be able to really get the best out of, ultimately, qualifying now. But that's only part of it," he added, before turning his attention to next year, when the regulations are set to be revamped.

"So hopefully next year it's not a driving style that's alien to me. Hopefully I can go back a little bit towards what I used to do," concluded Hamilton.

Despite sometimes being overly harsh on himself in his post-session asssessments, Hamilton has been able to come back from the summer break and turn aoround a season that many pundits saw could've been his last ever in Formula 1. However, the seven-time world champion still has another year left on his contract with a report option to remain in the Scuderia for 2027.