Lewis Hamilton must follow strict rule at Ferrari that no other F1 team has including Mercedes and Red Bull

Lewis Hamilton will have to follow a strict rule this year at Ferrari which could concern the seven-time World Champion.

Hamilton arrived at Maranello on Monday and posed in front of Enzo Ferrari's white house alongside the iconic Ferrari F40.

The 40-year-old will be in Italy all week and is expected to make his on-track debut for the Scuderia on Wednesday, likely driving either the 2021 or 2022 Ferrari challenger.

Ferrari is by far the most prestigious team on the grid, so it's no surprise that Hamilton wants to tick it off his bucket list as he approaches the end of his career.

Racing for Ferrari will be a completely different responsibility for Hamilton due to the team's history, and his new team operate under long-standing rules that Hamilton will have to live with.

Other teams on the grid quite openly have a driver hierarchy within the team, for example, Max Verstappen is given priority on strategy for Red Bull and Hamilton himself received similar treatment at Mercedes when teammates with Valtteri Bottas.

Red Bull chief Helmut Marko even confirmed Liam Lawson should not 'expect to beat' Verstappen in 2025 as that 'isn't his role'.

At Ferrari however, the team itself is treated as a kind of higher power and must come before any individual, so the notion of having a number-one driver is not considered by the Italian team.

Team Principal Fred Vasseur reiterated this point last year:

“We showed this season that we have more than equal treatment between the drivers,” Vasseur told media.

“I remember perfectly that one year ago in the same room, I had tons of questions about Charles number one and Carlos number two and 'blah blah blah'.

“It's not that we have a number one that’s a bigger asset. We have two drivers, they are doing a good job," Vasseur stated.

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton at the 2024 Italian Grand Prix- Getty

This could become an issue for Hamilton given his recent form, particularly given he is up against Charles Leclerc who is coming into his prime years.

Despite holding the record for most pole positions in the sport's history, Hamilton's qualifying form was disastrous by his own admission in 2024.

Leclerc has a 100% record of out qualifying his teammate across a full season, and without a certified number-one driver Ferrari are far more likely to give their lead driver a preferential strategy.