After a difficult first season at Ferrari in 2025, Lewis Hamilton regained prominence in Formula 1 in 2026 and received praise from Damon Hill. For the former driver and 1996 F1 champion, the seven-time world champion only confirmed a characteristic that has always marked his career, which is the ability to return to the highest level.
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Hamilton arrived at the category’s summer break in August, occupying second place in the drivers’ championship, behind only Kimi Antonelli. In addition, he is ahead of George Russell in the standings, even with Hill highlighting that the compatriot, in general, had a more competitive car. The Ferrari driver also opened a 31-point lead over his teammate, Charles Leclerc, who is facing a more difficult season than the previous one.
In an interview with F1.com, Hill said he never lost confidence in Hamilton’s potential to react: “The best always ends up showing up. If you cut him in half, it would say ‘competitor’. He wants to win at everything he does. I don’t think it’s in his personality to simply accept the situation. It became clear that he worked a lot during the winter and also in the way he wanted Ferrari to be for him,” he said.
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The former driver believes that the work done during the pre-season went beyond just an adaptation of the seven-time champion to the Italian team. In Hill’s opinion, Hamilton used his experience to guide the car’s development in a direction more compatible with his driving style.
“They hired him and invested a lot of money to have him on the team. So he says: ‘I’m not just going to do it your way. I’m going to show you how I work and you’re going to make that work for me.’ The weight of his reputation and career is being used to protect himself, and I think he is absolutely right to act this way,” Hill concluded.
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