'Never Say Never': Hamilton still believes in F1 title chances with Ferrari

The Ferrari driver arrives in Barcelona encouraged by recent progress, having claimed back-to-back second-place finishes and moved up to second in the drivers' standings. While Antonelli's remarkable run of five consecutive victories has established the Mercedes youngster as the clear title favourite, Hamilton is not ready to surrender his championship ambitions.

Asked whether the title fight was already slipping out of reach, Hamilton delivered a simple but determined response. "Never say never," he said.

The seven-time world champion acknowledged that the current deficit is significant, particularly given Antonelli's exceptional form during the opening phase of the season. The 19-year-old Italian has emerged as the breakthrough star of 2026, winning five races in a row and building a healthy advantage at the top of the standings.

However, Hamilton believes there is still plenty of time left in the championship for the picture to change. "I knew we would get to this point at some point," said Hamilton on Thursday's media day ahead of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.

Only six rounds have been completed so far, leaving the vast majority of the season still to come. The Ferrari driver pointed to the unpredictable nature of Formula 1 and the long campaign ahead as reasons for maintaining belief.

The Briton also feels Ferrari is gradually closing the gap to the frontrunners. His recent podium finishes have provided further evidence that the Scuderia is moving in the right direction after an inconsistent start to the campaign.

Hamilton narrowly missed out on victory in Monaco, finishing second behind Antonelli after another strong performance. Despite the disappointment of missing out on a first Ferrari win, he has repeatedly stressed that the team is making progress and that a breakthrough victory is getting closer.

He added: "In terms of the title, I think we can still out-do people in terms of how we develop the car. Our car is very good, the downforce package that we have is really good.

Hamilton's experience means he understands better than most how quickly momentum can shift across a Formula 1 season. The Ferrari driver has overturned sizeable deficits in previous title campaigns and knows that reliability issues, upgrades and changing track characteristics can rapidly alter the competitive order.

Barcelona could prove an important test in that regard. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is traditionally viewed as one of the best indicators of a car's true pace, and Ferrari will hope the weekend provides further proof that it can challenge Mercedes on a more consistent basis and so long as there are races left to run, Hamilton believes the championship fight remains alive.