Hamilton ends two-year wait with emotional first Ferrari win at Barcelona

Lewis Hamilton delivered his maiden grand prix victory in Ferrari red at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Sunday, ending a two-year winless run and succeeding at the Scuderia in just his 31st attempt. The seven-time world champion’s 106th career win was built on an aggressive soft-tyre gamble that set him apart from most of the frontrunning field.

While poleman George Russell and the majority of frontrunners opted for harder compounds to manage Barcelona’s punishing tyre degradation, Hamilton and Ferrari went on the offensive, committing to a three-stop strategy that allowed the upgraded SF-26 to run at full pace throughout. That approach paid dividends in the closing stages, where Russell struggled for front-end load on his hard tyres and Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli faced similar difficulties holding position.

Hamilton also benefited from a stroke of fortune on lap 40 when Fernando Alonso parked his Aston Martin, triggering a virtual safety car that enabled Hamilton to take his final stop without losing track position. Even without that intervention, Ferrari’s blistering pace in the final stint suggested the result was increasingly inevitable.

On his outlap after the decisive stop, an emotional Hamilton addressed his team over the radio. “Grazie a tutti Maranello, thank you so much,” he said. “You helped me achieve this dream and I can’t thank you enough. Thank you to everyone for pushing so hard back at home. I’m so proud of you. Thank you to my family and thank you to the fans for continuing to remind me who I am — I couldn’t have done it without you.”

Speaking in parc ferme, Hamilton reflected on where the victory ranks among his 106 wins. “They’re all special in their own way but this one is something else,” he said. “I watched Ferrari have all their success on TV when I was younger and wondered what it would be like to win in this car. I’m forever grateful and this is hopefully the first of many.”

The win is the culmination of a journey that began when Hamilton made the surprise move from Mercedes to Ferrari ahead of the 2025 season. After 30 races without a victory in red, the 41-year-old finally delivered the result that both he and the Scuderia had been building towards — and did so with characteristic authority on one of the most demanding circuits on the calendar.