Lewis Hamilton has expressed concerns that Ferrari’s delay in appointing a permanent race engineer ahead of the 2026 Formula 1 season could adversely affect his second year with the Italian squad. The seven-time world champion shared these views during pre-season testing in Bahrain, emphasizing the challenges of adapting to new team dynamics early in the championship.
Interim Solution in Place After Adami’s Reassignment
Ferrari announced earlier this year that Riccardo Adami, who served as Hamilton’s race engineer during his demanding debut season with the team, would be reassigned within the organization. While the team has not publicly named a permanent replacement, Carlo Santi—previously involved with Kimi Raikkonen’s crew at Ferrari—is understood to be temporarily filling the role.
Hamilton acknowledged this interim period without naming Santi directly, explaining that he will need to establish rapport with a new engineer soon after the season’s start. He described the short-term arrangement as harmful during a period when stable, experienced collaboration is critical.
Hamilton said,
“It’s actually quite a difficult period because it’s not long-term, the solution that we currently have, it’s only going to be a few races.”
He added,
“So, early on into the season, it’s going to be switching up again, and I’ll have to learn to work with someone new, so that’s detrimental to a season where you want to arrive with people that have done multiple seasons, have been through thick and thin and are calm.”
But it is the situation that I’m faced with and I’ll try to do the best that I can. The team is trying to do the best they can to make it as seamless as possible.
– Lewis Hamilton, Formula 1 Driver
Reflection on Adami’s Departure and Past Communication Challenges
Throughout Hamilton’s first year at Ferrari, the broadcast of team radio communications revealed some difficulties in rapport with Adami, pointing to struggles in their collaboration. Despite these issues, Hamilton stressed that the decision to part ways with his race engineer was not taken lightly.
With Riccardo, it was obviously a very difficult decision to make,
Hamilton remarked.
I’m really, really grateful for all the effort he put in last year and his patience in what was a difficult year for us all.
– Lewis Hamilton, Formula 1 Driver
Adjusting to New Regulations and Cars for the 2026 Campaign
Hamilton faced a tough 2025 season with the previous generation of ground effect cars, failing to reach the podium for the first time in his career. The introduction of fresh technical regulations in 2026 offers Ferrari a renewed opportunity to challenge for championships through improvements in both power unit and chassis development. Hamilton described the new cars as more enjoyable to drive, despite their lower aerodynamic grip, comparing them somewhat to GP2 vehicles.
I think right at the moment it doesn’t feel anything like the genre before, and it’s really just too early days,
he noted.
“With the baseline car that we have, we’re still trying to test lots of different things, we’re still trying to find the window that it likes to work in, we haven’t optimised the tyres, we haven’t optimised the aero package yet, the ride height, the mechanical balance, all these different things, so I’m not going to judge it just now.”
It didn’t feel great out there today with the wind, it was very, very gusty, the gustiest I can remember it being here. We just had to take it with a pinch of salt, plus it’s the first day here, which in the morning is never fun. But in general, as I said at the last test, it’s a more fun car to drive.
– Lewis Hamilton, Formula 1 Driver
Prospects for the 2026 Title Battle and Competition with Rivals
Hamilton, who currently holds a joint record of seven world championships alongside Michael Schumacher, has not been a title contender since the contentious 2021 season. When asked about his chances for an eighth championship under the new regulations, he remained cautiously optimistic but admitted the situation is still unclear.
“Impossible to know at the moment. I hope we’re in the mix,”
Hamilton said.
“I think, apart from Mercedes, we all look like we’re quite close, but we don’t know what fuel loads people are on. There’s whispers of certain fuel loads that Mercedes are on, there’s whispers of extra power that they have that the rest of us don’t – the compression ratio sort of thing.”
So hopefully that gets sorted and the FIA take care of that and make sure that we’re all starting on an equal playing field, and then we’ll see.
– Lewis Hamilton, Formula 1 Driver
Testing Timeline and What to Expect in Bahrain
Pre-season testing in Bahrain is an important milestone for Ferrari and other teams as they refine their cars ahead of the 2026 season opener in Australia from March 6-8. The testing schedule features multiple sessions across two weeks, with live coverage available for fans to monitor developments and team performance.
Test One takes place from February 11 to 13, followed by Test Two during February 18 to 20. Each session includes morning and afternoon track runs with analysis provided throughout the day.
Implications of Engineer Turnover and Season Outlook
The absence of a confirmed, long-term race engineer for Hamilton signals potential difficulties in building the cohesive communication and trust critical for consistent championship contention. Early-season instability in the race engineer role could hinder Ferrari’s ability to maximize performance gains from their updated regulations. While Hamilton remains hopeful about competing strongly, adapting quickly to staff changes will be a crucial test for both driver and team.
As Ferrari continues its preparations and the FIA seeks to ensure equitable competition, the unfolding 2026 season promises to be pivotal for Hamilton’s aspirations and the legacy of his career alongside racing legends including Michael Schumacher. The evolving landscape, combined with Hamilton’s desire to harness the new car’s potential, underscores the urgency for Ferrari to secure stability within its technical team to support their title ambitions.
