Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Mercedes, Formula 1
Marcus Chan
Lewis Hamilton's best lap time from his first session at Silverstone as a Ferrari driver has been compared to his 2024 Mercedes time.
Following last weekend's Austrian Grand Prix, the 2025 Formula 1 season continued on Friday afternoon as the British Grand Prix kicked off with the first practice session taking place at the world-famous Silverstone circuit.
Heading into the weekend, all eyes were fixated on Hamilton, as he arrived at the home of British motorsports for the first time as a Ferrari driver.
Last season, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion recorded his last ever victory for Mercedes as he took the chequered flag ahead of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.
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Although he has had a tough start to life at Ferrari, many fans still harbour hope that he could produce his best at his home race.
On Friday, Hamilton impressed during FP1 as he recorded the quickest time of 1:26.892, 0.023 seconds ahead of McLaren star Norris and 0.150 faster than championship leader Oscar Piastri. He was also 0.203 quicker than Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc.
Despite it being just the first practice session of the entire race weekend, this will come as encouraging news for Hamilton fans as he only managed to clock a time of 1:27.858 while driving at last year's FP1 for Mercedes.
In addition, driving for Ferrari last year, Carlos Sainz produced a best FP1 lap of 1:27.925, which was slower than Hamilton's latest effort.
Current teammate Leclerc's time was also slower in 2024, with the Monegasque recording a time of 1:27.903.
All this bodes well for Hamilton as he looks to take the FP1 momentum into FP2 before looking to mount a charge for pole position on Saturday afternoon.
The 40-year-old will then hope to spring the ultimate surprise and win back-to-back races at Silvertone, something he hasn't done since 2021.
Speaking after FP1, Sky Sports pundit and ex-F1 star Martin Brundle stated that the windy conditions played a part in Ferrari's impressive session.
He said: "The car is quite good in these windy conditions. We saw cars spin off at 180mph. I think Lewis knows how to deal with all of that and the Ferrari does too.
"That knowledge and understanding Hamilton has got here gives him extra confidence. This is a track that takes no prisoners. It's super high-speed."
Naomi Schiff added: "It's really positive news to see Ferrari like this. Charles is right there too and it looks like a tight fight for everybody."