'There's magic here' - Hamilton more hopeful than ever of eighth title at Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton says the "magic" he has experienced at Ferrari since joining the Italian team has left him more hopeful than ever of winning a record eighth Formula 1 world championship.

Hamilton stunned the sporting world last February by announcing he would end a 12-year stint with Mercedes to join Formula 1's most iconic team and is now just weeks away from making his competitive debut at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, live on Sky Sports from March 14-16.

The 40-year-old Briton was controversially denied an eighth drivers' title - that would take him clear of joint record-holder Michael Schumacher - by Max Verstappen in 2021 and has not since been provided with a car capable of contending for the title.

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Asked on Wednesday after Ferrari ran their new SF-25 on track for the first time whether he is more hopeful than ever of claiming an eighth title, Hamilton replied: "Yes. But I'm also aware there's a lot of drivers that never ever get to win a world championship, first and foremost.

"I've been fortunate to work in two teams previously, work with great organisations, and you've seen in the history of the sport where you've got great teams and things don't align and they end up, some of them, not winning the world championships.

"But this team already has an insane legacy and they're not short of how many world championships they've won. So, I think in their DNA, they have that winning mentality.

"The competition is fierce and we've had great results from other iconic teams, like McLaren and Red Bull and obviously, Mercedes.

"It's going to be close up the top. But I've got a great team-mate. The energy that I'm receiving from the team, there's magic here.

"It's going to still take a lot of hard work and grafting from absolutely everyone. And everyone's putting that in already to achieve it.

"But it's also about belief. Everyone here dreams of winning with Ferrari, every single person in this team."

Ferrari have 'every ingredient' to win titles

Hamilton has joined Ferrari with the team having not won the Constructors' Championship since 2008, while it was a year earlier than that that Kimi Raikkonen claimed their last drivers' title.

They came extremely close to claiming the teams' title last season when finishing just 14 points back from champions McLaren, and another tight battle is expected as the sport enters a final season under its current regulations.

Hamilton, praising the leadership of Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur, chair John Elkann and chief executive Benedetto Vigna, says he is sure his new squad are ready to end their unwanted winless streaks.

"I worked with two world championship winning teams before," he said. "I know what a winning team looks and feels like.

"The passion here is like nothing you've ever seen. They've got absolutely every ingredient they need to win a world championship.

"It's just about putting all the pieces together. We've got a great leader in Fred, in John, in Benedetto.

"Everyone just has a really calm and good approach. No one's like, 'we're perfect in every single area'. Everyone's like, 'we need to elevate everywhere'. They're leaving no stone unturned to try and do that."

Ferrari experience 'everything I've dreamed of and more'

Hamilton's start to life at Ferrari has been something of a whirlwind with several testing sessions in previous years' cars at the team's own Fiorano circuit - along with an outing in Barcelona - having come between opportunities to meet his new colleagues.

He attended F1's inaugural all-team launch in London on Tuesday night as all 10 liveries for the 2025 season were revealed, before rushing back to Italy to drive the SF-25 for the first time on Wednesday.

Despite the challenges of the process, Hamilton says the period feels like "the most exciting time of my life".

He told Sky Sports F1's Ted Kravitz: "The build-up into the year, coming to the factory, meeting everyone, seeing Ferrari that I've watched for so many years from the distance and to actually get inside and feel the passion within all of the people within the team, the fans within the town, has been incredible.

"The first two days I couldn't sleep. I was so excited for that first day. Even today, walking past Enzo's old house, that beautiful old building, every day I was pinching myself like 'wow, it's really real and I'm really here finally, wow, after all these years we made it happen'. I feel so privileged to be part of this brand.

"On top of that, sitting in a Ferrari car, the doors open from the garage and the doors open from the track, it's everything I've dreamed of and more."

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