Lewis Hamilton Backs Ferrari to Challenge Mercedes for 2026 F1 Title

Lewis Hamilton remained the driver to watch closely as he fought against his teammate Charles Leclerc for his first podium finish at Ferrari. The Briton achieved his joint-career best finish at the 2026 season opener in Australia. Now, following Mercedes’ dominant showing in Australia, Hamilton has talked about the Italian constructor’s chances to fight against Brackley over the new regulations.

Since the beginning of the 2026 season, Lewis Hamilton had pointed out that Ferrari’s start to the year was already much better than the previous season. Moreover, the seven-time champion was delighted to have his DNA embedded in the SF-26. Now, Hamilton is already looking much more positive than last time and is looking forward to the challenge.

Following Ferrari’s second-row finish at the Australian GP, Lewis Hamilton is now confident about Ferrari’s chances to fight against Mercedes for victories. The Briton applauded Maranello’s great job in Australia. Hamilton insisted that there were a lot of positives to take from the weekend. After fighting so closely with Charles Leclerc and almost overtaking him, Hamilton remained confident that a podium finish isn’t so far off.

Lewis Hamilton accepted that Ferrari wasn’t as good as Mercedes in terms of sheer pace. However, he is sure that the two teams would surely fight one another for better results on track. Though a lot needs to be covered if the Italian constructor wants to fight at the forefront, it isn’t impossible. Hence, Hamilton is looking forward to the 2026 season and finally fighting for race wins and potentially, the championship.

The team did a great job overall, There are lots of positives to take. A couple of more laps and I would have had Charles, so I know we can be fighting for podiums. We’re not as fast as Mercedes but we’re right in the fight. We’ve got a lot of work to do to catch them but it’s not impossible.

Lewis Hamilton said, as reported by The Guardian.

Lewis Hamilton identifies mistake in Ferrari’s strategy in Australia

The Australian GP was run under far from normal conditions. Over six drivers suffered from a DNF, with two of those not starting the race at all. The race witnessed multiple virtual safety cars and cautions, but Ferrari did not pit for the first two of those. Charles Leclerc even pointed out how it wasn’t the best decision to not pit. Now, even Lewis Hamilton has fired some shots at the team’s strategy in the land down under.

Lewis Hamilton noted that he felt great finishing in P3 and P4, which was the best result they could salvage after Mercedes’ quick car. Hamilton highlighted that he still wanted to see if it would’ve been better to have atleast one of the car pit under the virtual safety car. The Briton highlighted that the team would closely check the situation and figure out if they committed a mistake or not with the strategic call to not pit.

I feel great, We got a third and fourth and ultimately Mercedes were quicker than us. We need to see if stopping would have been better. I definitely thought we should have come in or, at least one of us, to cover the Mercedes. We will look to see what we can do better.

Lewis Hamilton noted.

The 2026 season has just begun, and it would be too early to rule out any of teams or drivers. For now, the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull seem to have great pace as compared to others. It will be clear after a couple of races if the Italian constructor has really got what it takes to finally contend for both championships after so long in Formula 1.

Read More: Lando Norris Brands 2026 F1 Regulations as “Artificial” After Humbling Australian GP

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW