Sara Schmidt Contributor

Fatigue is beginning to set in among Lewis Hamilton fans. His move to Ferrari created a flurry of excitement and hope. Yet, with four races left in the 2025 season, Hamilton sits sixth in the Drivers’ Championship, with no podium finishes and only six races in which he placed in the top five. What happened to the Lewis Hamilton who won seven Driver Championships, who dominated the sport and tied Michael Schumacher for the most championships in F1 history?

Hamilton entered F1 in 2007, joining McLaren and finishing second, only one point behind Kimi Räikkönenin, in his rookie year. Hamilton’s move to Mercedes-Benz in 2013 marked the start of his total domination, winning six consecutive championships from 2014 to 2020. In 2021, things took a downward turn as Hamilton battled Red Bull driver Max Verstappen for the championship, which remained undecided until the season’s final Grand Prix. Hamilton lost this final race after a controversial decision by race officials that put him at a disadvantage. From that point, Hamilton’s domination gave way to Verstappen’s emergence as F1’s dominant driver.

Hamilton is one of the first F1 drivers to take an active role in advocating for inclusion and diversity in the sport. As Hamilton stated, “I’ve been on the receiving end of racism… for a long time,” but for him, it is about the bigger picture. Hamilton founded the Mission 44 foundation in 2021 to empower underrepresented groups to consider careers in STEM and motorsport, stating that “as long as I have air in my lungs,” he will push to make motorsport more diverse and inclusive. No other driver has ever taken a stand like Hamilton in confronting the sport for what it is: an overly rich white boys’ club that has remained isolated from issues of social justice for too long.

With Hamilton’s move to Ferrari to fulfill a childhood dream of racing in red, like his idol Schumacher did from 1996 to 2006, his competitive performance has taken a hit. Hamilton’s average race deficit to his teammate Charles Leclerc is 0.201 seconds. Hamilton certainly needs to improve his lap times. Aware of his struggles, Hamilton even berated his Hungarian Grand Prix performance, saying, “I’m useless, absolutely useless.” Hamilton’s confidence is obviously shaken, but Ferrari is no easy F1 organization to thrive in. Winning their last Constructors’ Championship in 2008 and Drivers’ Championship in 2007, Ferrari is spiralling, underscored by its president’s recent comment that Leclerc and Hamilton need to “focus on driving and talk less.”

When Schumacher joined Ferrari, the team had not won a Drivers’ Championship since 1979, yet it still took him four years to win his first championship with Ferrari in 2000. Hamilton deserves similar breathing space right now, from himself, his fans, and the sport. Hamilton’s first Ferrari season is undoubtedly one to move past, but it is worth even more. Joining Ferrari was abold step, and when he wins his eighth championship in red, it will embody everything Hamilton is and can still achieve.