How can Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari win a F1 world title together?
Well…if I had all the answers I’d be employed by the team, wouldn’t I?
Ferrari last won a world drivers’ title with Kimi Raikkonen in 2007, and to put that into perspective I was a seven-year-old girl twirling in front of the TV to Angelina Ballerina.
As Ferrari’s championship drought lengthens, so too does the conveyor belt of team principals coming and going, with Stefano Domenicali, Marco Mattiacci, Maurizio Arrivabene and Mattia Binotto all failing to return the Scuderia to world title success since 2008.
Fred Vasseur is the latest boss to be given this Herculean task, and discussions have already started in the Italian media as to whether he should be replaced.
However, Ferrari would be absolutely insane to do this so early, papering over the cracks of an issue that lies at the heart of the team.
Instead, there is one aspect of Ferrari’s operations that makes no sense – and whilst does not wholly explain their failure to win a championship – it should be something the team consider.
Leaving Italy.
Can Hamilton restore championship glory to Ferrari?
Lewis Hamilton has struggled at Ferrari
Lewis Hamilton has not only failed to enter championship contention in his first year at Ferrari, but has also been unable to match his team-mate Charles Leclerc, who has claimed three grand prix podiums.
Hamilton’s misery stands in stark contrast to his original signing in 2024, where he was heralded as the secret ingredient that could return the Scuderia back to their championship winning ways.
Of course, there was another name who could have helped turn Ferrari’s fortunes around.
When Adrian Newey left Red Bull last year, reports suggested the design legend could finally join forces with Ferrari and Hamilton to help conjure a championship winning car.
However, this move never materialised and instead Newey opted to join Aston Martin; but it is interesting to wonder, would Ferrari now be more successful with Newey on board?
Should Ferrari have fought harder for Newey
As we’ve seen with Aston Martin, Newey’s presence at the team has an indirect influence on the development of the 2025 car, even if his focus is on their 2026 contender.
When asked by The Race whether Newey’s expertise were having an influence on their current car, team principal Andy Cowell replied: “Absolutely.
“With the methods and the tools and the approach that’s taken to looking at the data, interpreting the data and also prioritising what you feel is the best thing to chase in order to create a car that can be driven around a track quicker.”
Undoubtedly, Newey would have been a massive asset for Ferrari, even in the short-term, and whilst the Brit was offered a lucrative deal from Aston Martin, there is another factor that may have deterred him away from the Prancing Horse.
Italy.
At 66-years-old it is unlikely Newey would have uprooted his life to move to Maranello, particularly if his family remained in the UK, and the same logic could apply to the rest of the engineering talent in F1.
Should Ferrari have a factory in Motorsport Valley?
Seven of F1’s 10 teams have a base in ‘Motorsport Valley’ in the United Kingdom, the name given to the region of the country that houses most cutting-edge motorsport facilities.
Naturally, the most talented engineers, designers, mechanics and strategists are all based in this area and gravitate to rival teams in the south of England if they move elsewhere.
The teams in Motorsport Valley include: Red Bull (Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire), Mercedes (Brackley, Northamptonshire), McLaren (Woking, Surrey), Aston Martin (Silverstone, Northamptonshire), Alpine (Enstone, Oxfordshire), Williams (Grove, Oxfordshire) and Haas (Banbury, Oxfordshire).
Furthermore, ahead of Audi’s takeover of Sauber in 2026, the team plans to open a British base in Motorsport Valley to tap into this engineering talent, and new team Cadillac also have a Silverstone base to ensure they have access to top tier personnel.
If it is the priority for two new F1 entries to have a base in the UK, it shows how crucial the engineering staff that live in Motorsport Valley are to their future success – and makes it all the stranger that Ferrari do not have a base there themselves.
Arguably, the prestige of working with Ferrari and helping Hamilton to an eighth world title should be enough to attract the best talent. However, the champion’s former race engineer at Mercedes, Peter Bonnington, somewhat disproves this theory after he decided to remain at Brackley instead of following Hamilton.
“Packing up and leaving, him and his partner, it impacts both of them, so they had to do whatever is right for him,” Hamilton said to Sky Sports F1 at the Dutch Grand Prix in 2024.
“I knew it would be an unlikely scenario that he would go with me because it’s such a drastic change for his life. But I’m really happy that the team have acknowledged and made changes, so he can grow more.”
If Hamilton had a familiar face (or voice) and an established ally with him at Ferrari, he could have settled in easier at the team and be better placed to deal with the temperamental SF-25.
And that’s just Bono!
Think of the car Ferrari could develop if they expanded their operations beyond Italy, and instead have a dedicated team of engineers in Motorsport Valley rather than losing the best brains to rival teams.
Should Ferrari leave Maranello behind?
Of course, I’m not trying to say Ferrari’s location is the main reason for their lack of world title success, nor that the Scuderia’s current talent isn’t up to scratch. But their location has to be a contributing factor to their recent failures.
If rival teams have mopped up talent – like McLaren with Rob Marshall or Aston Martin with Newey – then whose left for Ferrari?
The team clearly lacks a leading technical figure who can turn the team around. Instead, their technical direction is split between Loic Serra (on the chassis side) and Enrico Gualtieri (on the power unit), and this divide is somewhat symbolic of Ferrari’s wider struggle for cohesion.
The team need a figure similar to Ross Brawn, whose technical direction guided Ferrari to five consecutive world titles with Michael Schumacher. Such a talent may already exist, but may not be willing to dismantle their life and move to Maranello.
Ferrari also should not cut ties with Maranello entirely. The factory is an integral part of their racing DNA and culture, but something has to shift and a split across their operations could be a necessary evil to return them to championship glory.
If Hamilton wants to win a title with Ferrari, they must refocus their energy into attracting top talent, rather than replacing Vasseur with another team principal who will struggle just as much as their five predecessors.
