Brundle says Hamilton race engineer swap should have 'happened earlier'

17:02, 24 Jan

byShayni Solanki

Martin Brundle suggests that Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari engineer swap should have happened sooner, claiming that "something needed to change."

The former F1 driver and Sky Sports presenter shared his thoughts on Hamilton's engineer swap with Riccardo Adami stepping down from the position ahead of the 2026 season.

Adami was Hamilton's trackside engineer for his first year as a Ferrari driver, and the pair navigated through friction throughout the season.

"I'm surprised it probably didn't happen a bit earlier."

- Martin Brundle

During the Autosport Awards, Brundle said: "I'm surprised it probably didn't happen a bit earlier, really, judging by all the things that were going on last year.

"Lewis needs to go there with a team so that at least they understand 'Lewis speak' when he's inside the car, what it all means, and to interpret what Lewis really needs behind the wheel.

"Just listening to the radio and watching the performance, although they obviously put a varnish on it through last season, something needed to change."

Adami has been moved from his trackside role to a different position within the team.

Hamilton had spent 12 years with Mercedes before joining Ferrari, and his time with Mercedes was spent with the same trackside engineer, Peter 'Bono' Bonnington.

Bono retained his role as a senior race engineer with Mercedes, taking on Kimi Antonelli for his rookie season as well as becoming the Head of Trackside Performance at the team.

Lewis Hamilton will have a new voice in his ear in 2026 - Photo: RacePictures

Hamilton has an interim race engineer, McLaren rumor grows

During the Barcelona test, Carlo Santi will fill in on an interim basis. Currently, there is no update on who Adami's successor will be.

Moreover, there are rumors that Ferrari wants to bring in a former McLaren employee as Hamilton's eventual race engineer.

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