‘I Had So Much Fun’: Lewis Hamilton Reflects on Ferrari Breakthrough in Montreal

Gratitude and satisfaction were the emotions expressed by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton following his strongest weekend since joining Ferrari at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Securing a second-place finish — his best result since leaving Mercedes for Ferrari — and outperforming teammate Charles Leclerc in Montreal, Hamilton’s positivity stood in stark contrast to the lows of last season.

Hamilton endured a difficult introduction to life at Ferrari in 2025 during an era in which he never fully gelled with Formula 1’s ground-effect cars. Although he won the Sprint in China, Hamilton failed to secure a grand prix podium for the first time in his illustrious career and finished a substantial 86 points behind Leclerc in the championship standings.

However, 2026 has started far more positively. Hamilton claimed his first Ferrari podium at the Chinese Grand Prix before delivering his strongest performance yet in red at Montreal.

Speaking after the race, in which he battled old rival and four-time world champion Max Verstappen, Hamilton said: “I had so much fun out there all weekend – every single lap. I felt like we started on the right foot, came with the right attitude, and the car really generally felt great.

“To come to Montreal, a track that I do love, and get to enjoy a Sprint weekend here, which is the first that we’ve had [here], was awesome – and this is my first second place with the team.

“It’s something I’ve been working so hard [for]… I can’t even begin to explain how deep I’ve had to dig to be able to get to this point, and the work and moving mountains in the background to enable this sort of performance.

“But I’m really grateful to the team for continuing to hold me up high and support me weekend in, weekend out, and it’s a really lovely feeling to see them so happy, because they truly deserve it with all the hard work they put in.”

Hamilton also praised the efforts of his new engineering team, led by Carlos Santi, who replaced Ricardo Adami. The Briton had struggled to build a strong working relationship with Adami throughout his maiden Ferrari campaign. Hamilton also suggested that avoiding Ferrari’s simulator ahead of the weekend had contributed to his improved preparation for Canada.

“I chose a different set-up this weekend, just ciphering through the data, working really well with my engineer – he’s absolutely awesome and I’m really loving working with him,” added Hamilton.

“My number two did a fantastic job this weekend, helped me really pull more performance out of the car, getting into a much sweeter place, and I was able to attack all the corners finally.

“As I said, there’s a lot of changes that I’ve had to ask for, and Fred’s been super supportive, and again, also moving mountains in order to make me comfortable. It’s finally starting to show in my performance, so thank you to the team.”

Hamilton now turns his attention to Monaco, a circuit that could suit the characteristics of the SF-26 and potentially provide Ferrari with an opportunity to challenge for victory. However, teammate Leclerc remains a formidable benchmark around the Principality, where the Monegasque traditionally excels on home soil.

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Written by

Jawad Yaqub

An eCommerce Specialist by day and reporting on F1 by night. Jawad is passionate about motorsport, having provided accredited F1 coverage for more than a decade. Live blogging (almost) every grand prix too since 2014, as well as articles on the Supercars Championship. Also keen on sustainability, photography, collecting vinyl, (trying to) expertly barbeque and learning to Dad.

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