Lewis Hamilton insists that Ferrari’s 2025 campaign can still be counted as a "huge achievement" if the Scuderia manages to finish the season inside the top three of the Drivers' Championship. He urged pundits and fans alike to focus on the positives that the team has produced, despite a string of recent setbacks that have clouded the year. The prospect of a title challenge for Hamilton and Ferrari has all but evaporated after a series of disappointing races. The seven‑time world champion has not stood on the podium since the British Grand Prix in early July, and a retirement in Madrid – the first of the season for him – saw him fall more than 100 points behind the championship leader, Kimi Antonelli.
That gap marked the first time this year that Hamilton was more than a hundred points off the lead, effectively ending any realistic hopes of contesting the title. Antonelli now enjoys an 81‑point advantage over his Mercedes teammate George Russell, and the gap between Hamilton and the leader stands at 101 points.
When asked about his own championship chances ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix – the 15th round of a 23‑race calendar – Hamilton replied, "Well, I mean, he's 101 points ahead of me. In just two races he gained about 40‑odd points, and we've been working so hard to claw back a few points here and there. There's still a long way to go. My focus is to hold onto second place, or at least keep Mercedes within reach for the constructors' title.
That would be remarkable." He added that the team must remember where they were last season and compare it with the progress made this year. "Sometimes it feels like doom and gloom, but you have to look at the positives," Hamilton said.
Ferrari endured a winless 2025 season and slipped to fourth in the Constructors' Championship, while Hamilton endured his toughest year in a red car, failing to reach the podium for the first time in his career. The situation did improve briefly when he claimed victory at the Spanish Grand Prix in June, and teammate Charles Leclerc followed with a win at Silverstone two races later.
"We've been fighting, we've had wins and podiums, the team have done an incredible job in terms of bringing upgrades, so you really have to acknowledge the good things that we've done this year," Hamilton continued. "I know lots of people focus on the negatives. For me, if I can battle with George and somehow get ahead of him – which would be very difficult as Mercedes are the leaders – then staying in the top three, even second, would be a huge achievement for us as a team." Currently Hamilton sits 20 points behind Russell in the drivers' standings.
While Ferrari has shown flashes of speed in qualifying and early race phases, operational and strategic errors have often undermined their results. "There are positives to take from the last few races, but the execution hasn't been the best and the results suffered because of that," Hamilton explained. "We learn from the areas where we were weak, we make improvements, and I’m excited for this weekend." The Spanish Grand Prix also highlighted Russell’s struggles, as he fell a season‑high margin behind Antonelli, who has now won two consecutive grands prix and amassed eight career victories in what has been an extraordinary second season in Formula 1.
Russell, who entered the year as the pre‑season favourite, has been open about the difficulty of adapting his natural driving style to the brand‑new 2026 cars. Nevertheless, he told reporters in Baku that he has made "very good progress" and feels confident he can fight for victories again. He stressed the importance of maintaining that momentum throughout the remainder of the season, especially as the sport heads into a relatively stable regulatory period that will extend into 2027. "It is crucial to resolve the issues we identified over the summer break," Russell said.
"The race pace, which was a weakness, has improved dramatically and we’ve been in the mix every race since the break. I now feel more comfortable that I can fight for great results." Although Russell has effectively ruled himself out of the championship battle, his approach to each weekend remains unchanged.
"I’ll keep fighting every single race until it’s mathematically impossible," he affirmed. "That doesn’t change how I do my job – I want to win every race and take pole every race. That’s my goal each weekend.
The deficit is huge, but it’s not the focus right now; performance is." The upcoming Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend is packed with supporting events, including F2 practice and qualifying sessions, a press conference for team bosses, and the F1 Show. The schedule begins on Thursday, September 24, with F2 practice at 9:00 am, followed by qualifying and a team‑boss press conference. Friday sees an F2 sprint, additional practice, and the main qualifying session for the Grand Prix. Saturday culminates with the F2 feature race, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix itself, and post‑race analysis.
All sessions will be streamed live on Sky Sports Main Event, with the option to watch via the Sky Sports app using a Chrome browser for the best experience. In summary, Hamilton’s message is clear: despite a challenging year, Ferrari must not be judged solely by its shortcomings. By emphasizing the upgrades, the occasional victories, and the lessons learned from strategic missteps, Hamilton believes the team can still finish the season in a respectable position.
If they can secure a top‑three finish in the Drivers' Championship, or even maintain second place in the Constructors' standings, Hamilton says that would represent a significant achievement for a programme that has struggled to find consistency in 2025. The upcoming race in Baku will be another test of whether the positives can outweigh the negatives and whether Ferrari can turn the narrative from "doom and gloom" to a story of resilience and progress.