Lewis Hamilton has gone against the grain after saying he “personally loved” the 2026 Formula 1 cars, despite criticism by other drivers during the Australian Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s podium-less streak with the Maranello-based team continued at the Albert Park Circuit, on Sunday.
That, however, did not mean that he didn’t enjoy driving the latest 2026-spec car. Starting from seventh on the grid, the Briton propelled himself into fourth on the first lap.
Staying in podium contention for the majority of the race, he even attempted a late-race coup on his team-mate Charles Leclerc, eventually taking the chequered flag behind the Monegasque in fourth.
After suffering a demoralising 2025 with Ferrari, Hamilton was visibly chirpier with the SF-26.
“I personally loved it,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“I thought the race was really fun to drive. I thought the car was really, really fun to drive. I watched the cars ahead; there was good battling back and forth. So yeah, so far, so good.”
Lewis Hamilton can’t understand criticism levelled against 2026 F1 cars
Hamilton probably was the only driver on the grid who had something overwhelmingly positive to say about the new cars.
Max Verstappen and Lando Norris both slammed the new cars, especially in terms of safety, with the reigning champion going as far as saying that the sport was waiting for “something to go quite horribly wrong.”
Haas’ Oliver Bearman also doubled down on this view, calling racing with the new cars “ridiculous”.
The seven-time World Champion, however, did not agree with any of the criticisms levelled. Rather, he pointed out how maybe the lack of competitiveness with these early-spec models might have coloured his rivals’ opinion.
“I don’t know. You’d have to ask them. For me, I thought it was awesome,” Hamilton responded.
“But again, they’re all further down the line. With 20 cars ahead of you, it may have seemed different, but in my position, I thought it was great.”
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