Lewis Hamilton: 'New F1 cars more fun to drive' than previous eras
Lewis Hamilton's extensive Formula 1 experience positions him uniquely to evaluate the latest generation of cars, and he's clearly enjoying what he's driving so far.
The seven-time F1 world champion is embarking on the fifth major regulations overhaul of his career and has been vocal about his preferences across different eras of car, especially after a challenging ground-effect period from 2022 to 2025.
His positive outlook on the new F1 cars, which made their official track debut at the Barcelona shakedown this week, is well-founded. Hamilton was present to test Ferrari's SF-26 following a filming day run at Fiorano after its launch last week.
Hamilton, who unofficially set the fastest lap of the shakedown at 1m16.348s, and completed 444 laps of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya with teammate Charles Leclerc, praised the new F1 cars for their more forgiving nature compared to the highly unstable ground-effect cars.
He shared with F1 post-shakedown, "The car generation is actually a little bit more fun to drive. It's oversteery and snappy and sliding, but it's a little bit easier to catch. I would definitely say more enjoyable."
Hamilton's comments followed an upbeat assessment of Ferrari's shakedown program, which included an unusual plan to run in wet conditions on Tuesday. Red Bull was the only team to join Ferrari on the track when rain arrived, but Hamilton was eager to experience the SF-26 in the wet, having faced a challenging learning curve during his first wet-weather action in a Ferrari at the 2022 Australian Grand Prix.
He explained, "It's been a really enjoyable week, honestly. I think a huge amount of work over the winter on my side, but then what the team has done over the winter to make changes going into the test [is positive]."
Hamilton's experience with Ferrari in wet conditions was particularly beneficial, given his previous struggle with the first race of the season in 2022, where he had to adapt to the car in a challenging environment.
He added, "A bit of an unusual start to the week when we tested and had a complete wet day, which was not something you would normally opt for, but last year I went to the first race and the Sunday of the actual race was the first time I had driven the Ferrari, and that was a very hard race. So it was good to have that experience and get that knowledge."
The consistent mileage achieved over the last couple of days, thanks to the dedicated efforts of the factory team, has been invaluable. Hamilton expressed his gratitude for the lack of downtime moments, acknowledging that small issues may arise in the coming weeks.
He concluded, "And then in terms of just understanding the car and the balance, we have a lot less downforce than previous years."
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