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F1 News Today: Lewis Hamilton ‘concern’ revealed as government minister weighs in on Baku controversy

 

Lewis Hamilton’s difficult run with Ferrari has come under fresh scrutiny following another frustrating Formula 1 weekend in Azerbaijan, with concerns emerging in the Italian media as the seven-time world champion’s championship challenge continues to fade.

 

The latest developments come after a chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, where Ferrari once again struggled to match Mercedes at the front. Hamilton eventually finished sixth, while Charles Leclerc crossed the line fourth, leaving the Italian team searching for answers after another weekend in which expectations were not matched by results.

 

Hamilton had entered the second half of the season firmly involved in the championship picture, but the situation has changed dramatically in recent races. According to the latest standings reported after Baku, Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli leads the championship on 302 points, with Hamilton third on 199 — a 103-point gap to the leader.

 

That growing deficit is now becoming one of the major talking points surrounding Hamilton’s first season with Ferrari.

 

The concern highlighted by Italian media is not simply about one disappointing race. Ferrari’s recent inability to match Mercedes consistently has raised wider questions about the team’s competitive direction and whether Hamilton can still fight for the championship during the remaining rounds.

 

Baku offered another illustration of the problem.

 

Ferrari showed some promise during the opening practice session, with Hamilton and Leclerc finishing third and fourth respectively. However, Mercedes subsequently increased its advantage, leaving Ferrari more than a second off the pace in parts of the second session. Hamilton acknowledged that rival teams had made a significant step forward while Ferrari had struggled to extract the maximum from its tyres and lacked Mercedes’ straight-line performance.

 

The weekend also produced controversy away from Ferrari.

 

A major talking point involved Lando Norris and Franco Colapinto following a first-lap incident that ended the races of Norris, Colapinto and Pierre Gasly. Colapinto accepted responsibility for the crash, describing it as a major mistake, while the FIA handed him a penalty that will result in a five-place grid drop at the next race after he was unable to serve the original time penalty because of his retirement.

 

Norris was highly critical of the incident afterwards and called for stricter FIA action, including race bans for drivers involved in what he described as careless incidents.

 

His comments subsequently triggered a remarkable reaction from Argentina.

 

Argentina’s foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, entered the debate on social media, taking a swipe at Norris by referring to the McLaren driver’s 2025 Canadian Grand Prix collision with teammate Oscar Piastri. Quirno questioned whether Norris had demanded similar punishment after his own incident in Montreal.

 

The intervention added a political dimension to an already heated F1 controversy, although it was separate from the sporting issue surrounding Hamilton and Ferrari.

 

Meanwhile, Hamilton’s own Baku weekend had already contained controversy before the race. During practice, he was investigated after impeding Liam Lawson on a flying lap through the high-speed section leading onto Baku’s long start-finish straight.

 

Hamilton received a driving reprimand after stewards determined that he had failed to follow the race director’s traffic-management instructions. The stewards also recognised the unusual difficulty drivers faced because of energy-management demands under the 2026 regulations.

 

The incident highlighted a wider concern at Baku, where the huge difference in speed between cars conserving electrical energy and those completing flying laps created potentially dangerous situations. Motorsport.com reported that drivers discussed possible solutions, although teams ultimately rejected changes that would have altered their energy-management strategy.

 

For Hamilton, however, the biggest concern remains Ferrari’s competitive position.

 

The British driver has repeatedly stressed the need for Ferrari to understand where Mercedes and other rivals are finding additional performance. After practice in Baku, he admitted that Ferrari needed to investigate its tyre performance and straight-line deficit.

 

With the championship gap now standing at more than 100 points, every remaining race carries greater significance for Hamilton.

 

Ferrari still has opportunities to recover, but the latest Baku result has intensified the questions surrounding the team. Hamilton’s move to Maranello was expected to produce a major championship challenge, yet the current standings show just how difficult that objective has become.

 

And with the season continuing, attention will now turn to whether Ferrari can respond — or whether Hamilton’s championship hopes will continue slipping away.