Lewis Hamilton’s debut season with Ferrari attracted plenty of intrigue from the outside.

Lewis Hamilton endured a tough rookie year with Ferrari (Image: Getty)

Ferrari’s head of track engineering, Matteo Toigninalli, has offered a glimpse into what life is like working with Lewis Hamilton. The Italian explained that the relationship the team has with the seven-time world champion is “extremely positive”, and that there is a “very, very strong link with him”.

Hamilton’s first season in Maranello was one of the most anticipated of the last decade in Formula One, but unfortunately for both Ferrari and the Brit, his dream move did not have a start to match.

The 40-year-old ended the campaign sixth in the standings, just six points ahead of Mercedes’ rookie, Kimi Antonelli, in seventh. Hamilton also failed to score a podium for the first time in his career, while team-mate Charles Leclerc registered seven as he finished the year 86 points ahead of the Brit.

From the outside, Hamilton appeared frustrated and, at times, lost during his first year in red, but according to Togninalli, the optics are worse than the reality. “Changing drivers and changing teams, mainly for a driver like Lewis, who has spent 10 years in the same team, has a certain level of experience, is very difficult from both sides, for the driver and for the team,” he explained.

“Every team is operating in a slightly different way; you are used to certain people, things in a central way. Then, if you put this in context, that you have the fact that Lewis was winning World Championships, and it’s a fact this year, we didn’t achieve the target of fighting for the World Championship, so you have the frustration creating the situation.

Lewis Hamilton was faced with a major adaption curve in 2025 (Image: Getty)

“I think what you see from outside is quite worse than what it is. I think the relationship with Lewis, what we are building with Lewis, is extremely positive. He spent 10 years in the same team, with the same people, and after 10 months, I think we have already a very, very strong link with him.

“Nevertheless, the frustration, the results, are creating this image of ourselves and of him in Ferrari, that I believe is much, much worse than what it is in reality. Why [is he] struggling? Again, I think part is the frustration.

“Part is as I said that we need some time to adapt to each other, and maybe we both, the team and Lewis, under-evaluated this at the beginning. [But] I’m confident, as I said, I don’t think the relationship is as bad as you all guys think. But I’m sure with time we’ll improve.”