Lewis Hamilton, for so long the thorn in Ferrari’s side, takes to the track this weekend in Italy as a potential hero in waiting. The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola will be Hamilton’s first race in front of the Ferrari faithful since he signed for the Scuderia in February and, while he is still driving a Mercedes, for the tifosi Hamilton embodies visions of a return to glory in scarlet.
Hamilton shocked Formula One and Mercedes when he announced he had done a deal to join Ferrari in 2025, the team he has battled with since his career began. The Scuderia last won the drivers’ championship in 2007, when Kimi Räikkönen pipped Hamilton to the title in the British driver’s debut season. A year later Hamilton denied Ferrari’s Felipe Massa the crown in a nail-biting finale in Brazil.
