Dec.8 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is heading into the winter break with speculation about an early Ferrari exit louder than ever – and his own words in Abu Dhabi have done little to quieten it.
The seven-time world champion has just completed one of the worst seasons of his career – no podiums in his Ferrari debut year, something no Maranello rookie has suffered in 44 years.
Now, Hamilton says he is shutting down completely.
“I don’t have a mindset for next year at the moment,” he told Sky Italia.
“I just want to switch off and not talk to anyone. Nobody will be able to reach me this winter. I won’t have my phone with me. I’m looking forward to that. Just being completely disconnected from the Matrix.”
He admitted he has never taken such a drastic approach before. “I’ve never put the phone in the damn bin for a winter, I don’t think. But I will now.”
Those comments sent the rumour mill spinning again.
Ralf Schumacher – who has repeatedly suggested Ferrari should replace Hamilton with Oliver Bearman for 2026 – said the interview was “strange” and “definitely leaves things open”.
Nico Rosberg, Hamilton’s former teammate, also believes the 40-year-old is internally conflicted.
“He’s in a bind,” Rosberg said. “I’m sure he’d like to quit. But he can’t – that would be a huge loss of face. He’s only just joined Ferrari, started this big project. To quit now? He has no other option but to try again.
“But it could get even worse. Time is not on his side – he’ll be 41 soon.”
Charles Leclerc, meanwhile, is urging Ferrari fans not to expect miracles in 2026 – and says part of the chaos around the team this year was created by the hype of Hamilton joining him.
“It’s true we created too many expectations this year,” Leclerc said.
“When someone like Lewis arrives at a team like Ferrari, two icons of the sport, it creates a lot of speculation that’s difficult to manage.
Everything happening around us was out of our control – the only thing we can control is being united, pushing hard, and staying motivated.”
Leclerc says he has no expectations at all for 2026.
“It will be carte blanche,” he said. “We don’t know where we start, and we don’t know where the others are.”
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur admits his own call to halt SF-25 development early – to prioritise 2026 – inflicted psychological damage internally.
“What I probably underestimated is the psychological impact it had on everyone,” he said. But he remains bullish about next season: “The crucial thing will be development. We’ll go back to a Formula 1 where performance fluctuates.”
Pedro de la Rosa, who worked with Hamilton at McLaren, believes 2026 will determine the Briton’s future entirely.
“I think he’s waiting to drive a completely different car,” he told DAZN.
“It’s Lewis’ last chance, but also for Ferrari. F1 needs Ferrari. With Hamilton and Leclerc they have two great drivers – now they must give them the car.”
Leclerc, despite being scheduled for the post-season Abu Dhabi test, admitted he wishes he could skip it.
“The disappointment after a year like this is affecting me,” he said. “I need a break – to disconnect, then refocus for next year.”
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