21/08/2025 09:15
Lewis Hamilton has expressed his excitement over the upcoming F1
regulations overhaul, which will see brand new cars and power units
competing in 2026. The seven-time F1 drivers' champion expects the
"learning curve" to be significant for everyone in the paddock, but
believes it forces people to "dig deep" and innovate. Whilst there
has been considerable concern and criticism shared by his peers,
the Ferrari driver is choosing to view the situation in a positive
light. "For me, the thing I love about Formula 1 is that there are
these changes that come along the way," Hamilton told media,
including RacingNews365 . "There's so much innovation and
development. "And every time they make these changes, the learning
curve is so steep for everyone within the team. So it really
challenges us all to dig deep, to innovate." Carlos Sainz, who sat
alongside Hamilton in the FIA press conference, explained how
"complicated" the new power units will be for drivers to initially
wrap their heads around . But that is no cause for worry in the
40-year-old's eyes. "Even from a driver's perspective, it's got
more and more intricate as the years have gone on," the 105-time
grand prix winner said. "Like Carlos mentioned, this next step, I
would say, probably the driver has even more input into the
development - particularly of the power unit and how you use the
power." Hamilton was keen not to "shut it down" and speak
negatively about the new cars, such is the step into the unknown
for the grid. "I don't really want to shut it down, because maybe
things will be good," he added. "Let's see when we get into the
next season. "It could go either way - it could be good, it could
be not so good. But only time will tell." Instead, Hamilton is
relishing the challenge of working on two distinctly different cars
simultaneously, despite his difficult start to life at Ferrari.
"What I love is that while we're fighting this season in this
championship, we're also having to develop the current car - and
then the next car," he explained. "And that, for me, is
fascinating. If we were just with the same car all the time,
evolving on a very small gradient, it just would not be anywhere
near as fun."