Lewis Hamilton is conducting his long-awaited debut outing in a Ferrari car as preparations towards his first Formula 1 season with his new team in 2025 continue.
Hamilton’s much-anticipated maiden appearance in a scarlet red machine arrived almost 12 months on since it was announced that he was moving to Ferrari.
The Briton took to the track in Ferrari’s 2023 car, the SF-23, around the team’s Fiorano test track, sporting the yellow helmet with red accents that he had revealed earlier on.
Hamilton’s run will precede team-mate Charles Leclerc getting reacquainted with his past Ferrari machine, both coming under the Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) programme.
“Lewis left the garage for his very first lap of the Fiorano track at 9:16 CET this morning,” a Ferrari statement read.
Hamilton’s maiden week with Ferrari
Spectators had been clamouring to get an ideal vantage point to witness the historic moment, with the event even reported to have triggered a “state of emergency”.
The commotion attached to Hamilton’s latest venture had been building throughout the week, which began with him having pictures taken outside Enzo Ferrari’s house.
Hamilton was photographed alongside Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur, whom he worked with in GP2 back in 2006, and Chairman John Elkann, who sanctioned the switch.
The seven-time F1 champion then spent time meeting his new team-mates in each department, completing a seat fitting and then spending time in the Ferrari simulator.
Hamilton described his visit to Maranello as a “dream” moment, expressing: “There are some days that you know you’ll remember forever and today is one of those days.
“I’ve been lucky enough to have achieved things in my career I never thought possible, but part of me has always held onto that dream of racing in red.
“I couldn’t be happier to realise that dream today. Today we will start a new era in the history of this iconic team, and I can’t wait to see what story we will write together.”
The ex-McLaren driver is gunning to end his illustrious career with at least one last title with F1’s most storied team to surpass the record he shares with Michael Schumacher.
Hamilton beat Ferrari’s Felipe Massa to his maiden crown in 2008 and also thwarted the Italian marque when he prevailed in battles against Sebastian Vettel in 2017 and ‘18.
READ MORE – Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari F1 debut triggers ‘state of emergency’ in Maranello
