Lewis Hamilton Shakes Up Backroom Staff with Departure of Race Engineer Riccardo Adami
Lewis Hamilton has made a significant change to his backroom staff after parting company with race engineer Riccardo Adami following a tumultuous season together at Ferrari. The British driver’s Ferrari team announced that Adami has been moved to a different role within the organization, marking the end of a partnership that was often marred by tense radio exchanges.
According to a statement from Ferrari, Adami will take on a new role as Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy and Test Previous Cars Manager, where his extensive trackside experience and Formula One expertise will contribute to the development of future talent and strengthening performance culture across the program. Ferrari expressed gratitude for Adami’s commitment and contribution to his trackside role and wished him every success in his new position.
A New Era for Hamilton
Hamilton will now have a different race engineer in place for the new season, which gets underway in Australia on March 8. The appointment of the new Race Engineer for car #44 (Hamilton) is expected to be announced in due course. This change comes after a season where Hamilton was outqualified by his teammate Charles Leclerc 19 times in 24 appearances and ended the season without a single podium for the first time in his career.
Hamilton’s debut season in red was marked by struggles, finishing 86 points behind his teammate in the championship. The British driver had pleaded with Adami to “leave me to it” in the rain in their first race together in Australia and accused his team of having “a tea break” as they deliberated whether to move Leclerc out of his way at the Miami Grand Prix in May.
Adami had previously worked with Sebastian Vettel, first at Toro Rosso, before following the four-time world champion to Ferrari. He was also Carlos Sainz’s race engineer before Hamilton replaced the Spaniard at Ferrari. Hamilton’s former race engineer, Peter ‘Bono’ Bonnington, who was instrumental in his six world titles with Mercedes, could not be persuaded to join him at Ferrari for his first season and will remain with the Silver Arrows for the upcoming campaign.
Looking Ahead to the 2026 Season
The first pre-season test, which takes place behind-closed doors at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya, begins on January 26. As Hamilton prepares for the new season, he will be looking to bounce back from a tough year and reclaim his position at the top of the Formula One podium. With a new race engineer and a renewed focus, Hamilton will be eager to prove himself once again as one of the sport’s top drivers.
As the 2026 season approaches, fans and pundits alike will be watching with bated breath to see how Hamilton and his new team dynamic perform. Will this change be the catalyst for a resurgence in form, or will Hamilton continue to struggle? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain – the upcoming season is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in recent memory.
