Lewis Hamilton and the strategy from Ferrari at the Austrian Grand Prix became a hot topic following the 2025 race at the Red Bull Ring, where Hamilton was heard questioning his team’s pit decision over the radio. Despite finishing fourth—his best result yet for Ferrari—the seven-time world champion was left wondering if a different approach could have made the difference.
As the closing stages of the Austrian Grand Prix unfolded, Hamilton’s radio exchange with his engineer, Riccardo Adami, caught the attention of fans and analysts alike. After being told to pit for fresh tyres, Hamilton pushed back, saying, “My tyres are okay. Can I extend? How many more laps left?” With Adami responding that there were 20 laps to go and insisting he box, Hamilton replied, “I don’t want to stop.”
With regular team boss Fred Vasseur absent for personal reasons, it was stand-in leader Jerome d’Ambrosio who addressed the media after the race.
D’Ambrosio defended the team’s call, explaining, “I think it was more a question of a matter of setting, so staying a few more laps. In the end, it’s nothing out of the norm.
“What we try to do as a team was to, and Austria is very much like that, you try to do your optimal strategy. You try to optimise your race time. That’s what we did with both drivers.
“To be honest, there was no incentive in doing anything different, because the McLarens were clearly far ahead and George quite far behind. So we were in between them with both cars.”
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He continued, “We just did a standard optimal strategy, and that was the most straightforward thing to do. From a driver’s perspective, you question always, is it the best? Can we do something else?
“They are racers, they’re Formula 1 drivers, that’s what they should do, and that’s what they do. But in the end, you look at the numbers and that’s what made sense.”
Hamilton later acknowledged that while he felt comfortable on the old tyres, he was not fully aware of the remaining laps at the time.
“I didn’t know how many laps there were, to be honest, at the time,” Hamilton said of his Austrian Grand Prix strategy. “The pace wasn’t looking great, but I felt like I could keep going. The balance was OK, but ultimately, I think it’s the right decision.”
Teamwork and Transparency at Ferrari
The latest radio drama is a sign of a wider shift within Ferrari, where input from both drivers is increasingly valued as the team aims to bridge the gap to McLaren and regain its place among the top teams in Formula 1.
D’Ambrosio praised Hamilton’s impact on the team, noting, “We wake up, we go to the factory and say, how can I improve? How can we be better in every area of the team, from engineering to execution on the track, to what feedback we can give to the drivers. How can we help one another as a team to move forward?”
He also highlighted the collaborative approach with Charles Leclerc. “We discussed in the same way with Charles, who also has extensive experience and we discussed as a team. We have regular meetings to discuss these things on how to best move forward.”
Despite the strong finish for both Hamilton and Leclerc—third and fourth at the Red Bull Ring—Ferrari remains in pursuit of the pace advantage that McLaren currently enjoys.
The team’s upgraded SF-25 performed well enough to keep rivals like Mercedes and Red Bull at bay, but Hamilton and Leclerc are still searching for the breakthrough that will put Ferrari back on top.
As the championship heads to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix, all eyes will be on Ferrari to see if their strategy and teamwork can turn solid results into a long-awaited win.
