Lewis Hamilton has a "huge disadvantage" at Ferrari due to 'lack of chemistry' with race engineer, claims Ralf Schumacher

Ralf Schumacher has opined that Lewis Hamilton is at a "huge disadvantage" at Ferrari. The Sky F1 German analyst highlighted a 'lack of chemistry' between the seven-time champion and his race engineer, Riccardo Adami, that could continue hampering their performance in 2026.

Hamilton and Adami's communication over the team radio during racing sessions in 2025 raised eyebrows in the F1 community. On multiple instances, the Briton sounded fed up with either some miscommunication from his race engineer or a lack of or delay in feedback that hampered his runs.

Ralf Schumacher addressed this turbulent driver-race engineer partnership at Ferrari in a recent interview with F1-insider. While speaking about how Lewis Hamilton shouldn't have spoken publicly about sending technical dossiers back to the Maranello headquarters with written feedback, he said:

"We all used to do that. The simulations were not so developed. Today it's different. I don't know if you should hold that against anyone. Hamilton should have made it a little less public. Basically, I think he and his engineer should go on vacation together. The chemistry doesn't fit. That's a huge disadvantage."

At Mercedes, Hamilton had a terrific partnership with then-race engineer Peter Bonnington, aka 'Bono'. The duo was the gold standard of how that intra-team relationship worked before Max Verstappen and his Red Bull race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, reached that level as well.

As for the speculation surrounding whether Riccardo Adami will continue as Lewis Hamilton's race engineer in 2026, a report by Italian publication Auto Racer claimed that the duo had a 'positive dinner' away from the track in the offseason and are set to continue the partnership this year.

Ralf Schumacher 'disappointed' with Lewis Hamilton's handling of his Ferrari partnership

Lewis Hamilton at the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - Source: Getty

Ralf Schumacher also expressed disappointment with how Lewis Hamilton handled his problems at Ferrari last season. The seven-time F1 champion often aired his grievances in the media after failures in qualifying or the race.

Though Team Principal Frederic Vasseur had defended him every time, emphasizing that Hamilton never carried the same negative tone into team meetings, Schumacher felt otherwise. When asked by F1-insider if the Ferrari driver can still be counted among the sport's greats like Michael Schumacher, Ayrton Senna, and Max Verstappen after such a dismal season, the former F1 driver replied:

"The successes basically speak for him. But yes, he had a dominant car, but he wasn't so superior to his teammates. Nevertheless, I would be more than satisfied with his record. What disappoints me is the way his problems are handled. This back and forth, this resignation. I expect more from someone with their status."

2026 could be the last year of Lewis Hamilton's F1 career if Ferrari doesn't improve under the new regulations. It seems unlikely that the 40-year-old will want to stay with the team in 2027 if there are no signs of improvement even in the second half of the 2026 season.

Edited by Yash Kotak