For eighteen months, the question hung over the paddock like a cloud: did Lewis Hamilton make the biggest mistake of his career leaving Mercedes?
Canada might be the first time we can genuinely say: maybe not.
Starting fifth at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Hamilton put together the kind of drive that reminded everyone why he has seven world championships to his name. He passed Max Verstappen late in the race with the composure of someone completely in control, crossed the line second, and stood on a Ferrari podium for only the second time in his Scuderia career. On the podium, he didn’t hide how much it meant. “It’s been pretty tough for the past year and a bit,” he said. “To finally find our sweet spot has been an amazing feeling.”
The context matters. His 2025 season at Ferrari was, by any measure, a disaster. No podiums in 24 attempts, and a staggering 86-point deficit to teammate Charles Leclerc by year’s end. The move that the whole world watched in disbelief looked, for most of last year, like it might define his legacy for the wrong reasons.
But 2026 has looked different from the jump. Hamilton ended a 16-month podium drought in China, and has been remarkably close to Leclerc in qualifying, even fractionally ahead on average across the first four rounds of the season, compared to being nearly two and a half tenths slower last year. That’s not a small shift.
Part of the change appears to be Hamilton himself. He reportedly stepped away from Ferrari’s simulator in the lead-up to Canada, having felt it was pointing the team in the wrong direction on setup. He trusted his instincts. It paid off. There’s also been a new engineer relationship, a reset mindset, and by his own account, a decision he made on Christmas Day about how he was going to approach the season mentally.
The one caveat worth keeping honest: Ferrari still aren’t close to Mercedes. A second place finish is brilliant for Hamilton personally, but the SF-26 isn’t a championship car yet. He sits fourth in the standings on 72 points, three behind Leclerc, and a long way off Antonelli’s 131. A first Ferrari win still hasn’t come.
But here’s the thing. The circuits getting closer on the calendar include Monaco, Barcelona, and Silverstone, where Hamilton’s win rate is nearly 45%. If the car keeps improving and his momentum holds, that first win in red is no longer a fantasy. It’s a matter of when.
The dream move might just be coming to life. Only 17 rounds left to find out.
