Source: REUTERS/Andrew Boyers
[Saba Sports News] As the opening race of the 2025 F1 season—the Australian Grand Prix—approaches, Lewis Hamilton is set to make his debut with Ferrari. However, concerns have been raised about the performance of the Ferrari SF-25 during the Bahrain preseason tests. Former F1 technical director Gary Anderson pointed out that this car does not show significant improvement compared to the Mercedes W15 that Hamilton drove last season. Hamilton made a high-profile switch from Mercedes to Ferrari in the winter of 2024, hoping to leverage this opportunity to pursue a record eighth F1 World Championship. However, Anderson’s comments have dampened this ambition, as he stated that the SF-25’s speed and handling exhibited during the Bahrain tests do not seem to be as impressive as expected. Hamilton has always preferred cars with high maneuverability to maximize his driving abilities, but the SF-25 showed noticeable understeering and bouncing issues during testing, leading Hamilton to go off track multiple times. Meanwhile, Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc also struggled with the unexpected and unpredictable performance of the SF-25. Reports indicate that Leclerc’s confidence in the car was shaken during testing, especially with Ferrari’s return to a double-wishbone front suspension layout for the first time since 2015, which shifted the car’s balance from oversteer to understeer, conflicting with Leclerc’s driving style.