Lewis Hamilton declares 'I'm back to my best’ after Ferrari milestone

Lewis Hamilton has confidently stated that he feels back to his best after claiming a first grand prix podium for Ferrari at Formula 1’s Chinese Grand Prix.

Seven-time world champion Hamilton endured a miserable debut campaign with the Scuderia in which a sprint race pole and win in China were rare highlights of a hugely disappointing 2025 season.

Hamilton has returned from the winter break re-energised and followed up a strong showing in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix by beating Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc to take his maiden podium in red in Shanghai on Sunday.

After netting the 203rd podium of his illustrious 20-year F1 career, the 41-year-old Briton declared he feels he is operating at his best once again.

“I definitely feel like I'm back to both mentally and physically my best,” Hamilton said. "I still think there's room to improve.

“Training this winter has been the heaviest and the most intense that I've ever had and that probably comes hand in hand with being older, it takes longer to recover. But I've managed to pull these new tools. I've got a great trainer that I've been working with in the past, but we worked together since Christmas day.

“Then the time with the factory, obviously with a new engineer, and that's obviously been a real good boost as well. Great morale within the team.

“As I said, just decided on Christmas day, how I was going to start this season, I decided what I was going to do mentally and I'm going to continue to tweak that. I do think there's more to come. I think I can still eke out more performance from this car. I'm still learning about it as, as I go, particularly with deployment and that.

“The mid-to-end of last year, really digging deep with the engineers and talking to them about the things that I wanted from a car that I didn't have any part of developing last year to then developing the car with them this year.

“To see them listen and put some of those things that I'd asked for on the car, I’m just incredibly grateful for them for listening on that side of things. And it just makes you feel more united with everyone because you're moving in the same direction.

“So I'm looking forward to getting back next week to Maranello and seeing everybody and big, big push.”

Hamilton admitted his first podium with Ferrari had taken “longer than I hoped” after going without a rostrum appearance during a season for the first time in his career last year.

“I think I came into the season with the confidence that I used to have and I think I've stuck at it,” he explained.

“I’ve been pushing for a podium. It's the hardest thing just to get a podium compared to a lot through my career. It was the biggest challenge to get that.

“I just had to bide my time and I think coming into the season, really cultivate that really positive mental attitude, and I'm taking that forward with me.”

First Ferrari win ‘more in sight than ever’

Hamilton won just two races in the ground-effect era, with his last coming at the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix when he was still a Mercedes driver.

But following Ferrari’s promising start to the new season, Hamilton feels a return to the top step of the podium is closer than ever.

“I definitely feel that I could say that it's more in sight than ever before. Last year couldn’t [it] have been further from view,” he added.

However, Hamilton admitted Ferrari needs a “huge upgrade” in order to close the gap to Mercedes in terms of engine power.

“These guys in qualifying, somehow we were a little bit closer in qualifying yesterday, but in the race trim, I think they've got four, five tenths on us at the moment. That's a huge step to pick up both in downforce and efficiency, and then also power.

“That's a huge upgrade that we need to push for. But I really do believe in everyone back in Maranello and that it's not an impossible feat to overcome. So Forza Ferrari, we’ve just got to keep pushing.”