Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari shook the Formula 1 world in early 2024, almost a whole year in advance of when he would actually join the Italian team. The build-up to fans seeing the seven-time world champion in red led them to believe Ferrari could be world champions once again.
The SF-25 has simply not been up to par this season; it has not even been as competitive as 2024's SF-24 either. Regularly behind the likes of McLaren, Red Bull, and even Mercedes at times, the car's shortcomings have only added to Hamilton’s own struggles.
Difficult is the best way to describe the 40-year-old’s season, and one regular issue that has occurred for Hamilton is a lack of dynamic between himself and race engineer Riccardo Adami.
Adami has an impressive resume spanning nearly three decades, having worked with the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo, and Carlos Sainz Jr. But there is still a clear disconnect between him and Hamilton.
A new engineer for Lewis Hamilton?
One of the biggest yet perhaps most overlooked contributors to the miscommunications is simply language.
Lewis Hamilton is British, so it is obvious that he has a strong grasp of English. Adami, on the other hand, is Italian and happens to speak with an Italian accent, making it quite difficult to be clear with Hamilton at times.
While it may have seemed like a basic and resolvable issue to start the season, it has turned into a source of frustration for Hamilton. Adami has also provided him with incorrect information at times, with the most notable instance occurring during the Mexican Grand Prix.
Hamilton was told he received a 10-second penalty for his collision with Max Verstappen, when in fact it was for ignoring the race director’s instruction and gaining an advantage.
For someone who has been a race engineer for two decades, such a mistake is quite unacceptable. There is clearly disappointment in Hamilton’s first season at Ferrari regardless, but if the team really want to help him flourish in 2026, they could either let him choose his race engineer or assign him someone he can clearly understand. As for Adami, he could end up in another role at Ferrari or move to another team.