Lewis Hamilton is nearing the end of his Formula 1 career as his stint at Ferrari is set to be his last.

The seven-time world champion joined the Maranello outfit over the winter after 12 record-breaking seasons with Mercedes. Hamilton signed a two-year deal as he looked to guide the team to their first title since 2008.

However, his start to life at Ferrari has not gone to plan. Hamilton is struggling to adapt to his new surroundings, a new car and establish a working relationship with race engineer Riccardo Adami.

While he has claimed two Sprint podiums, including the win in Shanghai, he has found it difficult to get the SF-25 in the right performance window on Sunday. Hamilton registered his best finish of fourth at Imola after being knocked out in Q2 the day before.

The 40-year-old sits sixth in the standings heading into the Spanish Grand Prix. He has been unable to push the car to the limits, a trend that has continued after Hamilton’s deficit to Leclerc in Saudi Arabia.

Hamilton has a ‘chronic lack of confidence’ in the front end of the SF-25. While he still has to adapt to his new environment, some people have begun to question whether the ability is still there.

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Lewis Hamilton will ‘never’ admit age is effecting him in F1

Hamilton came off his worst finish in F1 in 2024, finishing seventh in the standings and being outclassed by Mercedes teammate George Russell.

Many are starting to wonder whether the 40-year-old’s age is beginning to catch up to him. It was what former Red Bull driver Mark Webber realised towards the end of his career, but Hamilton will ‘never’ make the same admission.

That is according to former F1 commentator and journalist James Allen, who via the Cameron Cc YouTube channel said it is difficult to judge that until Ferrari provide Hamilton with a competitive car.

“I remember Mark Webber for example, telling me that he knew he wasn’t going to be going on for much longer when there was a particular high-speed chicane,” he said.

“I can’t remember where it was, I think it might have been Magny-Cours, somewhere like that anyway. And he’d always just had an absolutely ace way around it.

“And he could just feel that he wasn’t quite the same through that high-speed chicane. And every driver has a different way of knowing that you’re kidding yourself if you want to keep going beyond that.

“Lewis is never going to own up to anything if he is feeling any effect of his years and it’s really hard for us to judge until he’s got a car that’s capable of fighting at the front.”

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Will the Spanish GP flexi-wing directive help Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari woes?

Jolyon Palmer was worried about Hamilton’s pace in Monaco, as he could not stick with the top four drivers even after pitting. The Brit is desperate for Ferrari to bring upgrades and improve his fortunes.

The FIA’s flexi-wing directive at the Spanish Grand Prix should be the team’s perfect opportunity. Ferrari hope it will ‘shake up’ the order, but McLaren think it will not have that much of an effect on the field.

It is not just the front wing that Ferrari need to find improvements from, as their radical new front suspension has not worked out, giving it balance issues.

Ferrari will give up on 2025 immediately if their suspension upgrade fails to bring stability to the car. It that happens, Hamilton will be backing on the 2026 F1 regulations for Ferrari to give him a championship-winning car.