Breaking: Lewis Hamilton suffers Ferrari ‘damage’ following…read more
Lewis Hamilton Endures Tough Start to Ferrari Career at Imola with Floor Damage Setback
Lewis Hamilton’s much-anticipated debut race weekend in Italy as a Ferrari driver is off to a rocky start, far from the dream scenario envisioned by him and the passionate tifosi. The seven-time world champion faced a challenging final practice session ahead of Saturday’s qualifying at the Imola Grand Prix, finishing only tenth on the timesheets and revealing he had suffered damage to the floor of his car.
During FP3 (Free Practice 3), Hamilton was heard over the team radio reporting, “I have floor damage, I ran wide,” after running off the track at Turn 18, also known as Rivazza. The incident compromised his session and raised concerns about Ferrari’s setup ahead of the crucial qualifying phase. His performance on Saturday morning suggests a difficult road ahead if he’s to challenge the front-runners this weekend.
The entire field struggled to extract optimal pace from the soft compound tyres. Several teams, including Ferrari, found it difficult to improve on their earlier lap times set on medium tyres. Analysts have attributed this to a drop in track temperatures and a reduction in tyre pressures imposed overnight by Pirelli. The result was an unusually low level of grip for the soft tyres, making it harder for drivers to find consistent performance.
McLaren, on the other hand, continued their strong form from Friday. Lando Norris led the way in FP3, narrowly beating his teammate Oscar Piastri to the top spot by just a tenth of a second. Norris posted the fastest lap of the session with a 1:14.897, underlining McLaren’s pace and making them clear contenders for pole position later in the day. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen followed closely behind in third, just 0.181s adrift of the McLaren pair.
Further down the order, Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli impressed once again with the fourth fastest time, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc managed fifth, ahead of Carlos Sainz in his newly adopted Williams seat. Notably, Williams looked competitive, with both Sainz and Alex Albon (P9) inside the top ten.
Isack Hadjar continued to show promise for Racing Bulls, finishing seventh, while George Russell slotted into eighth for Mercedes. Despite being in the top ten, Hamilton’s deficit of 0.890s to the front runners is a worrying sign for Ferrari’s home race hopes.
Elsewhere, Liam Lawson had a dramatic moment at Tamburello, spinning at high speed and destroying his tyres in the process. Fortunately, he avoided hitting the barriers, and no red flag was required—unlike in the two Friday practice sessions, which both saw session-ending incidents.
As qualifying looms, Hamilton and Ferrari will need to regroup quickly. With McLaren and Red Bull displaying dominant pace, the Scuderia will be under immense pressure to deliver on home soil. For now, the dream Ferrari debut at Imola for Lewis Hamilton appears to be more of a nightmare than a fairytale.
