Hamilton hails new engineer Santi as Ferrari's winter reshuffle begins to pay off

Lewis Hamilton says he is thoroughly enjoying his new working relationship with Ferrari race engineer Carlo Santi, with the seven-time World Champion suggesting the winter reshuffle is already beginning to unlock his true potential at Maranello.

A Change That Needed to Happen

Adami, who had previously worked closely with Carlos Sainz during his time at Ferrari, had been on the other end of Hamilton's radio for the entirety of that difficult first campaign. Over the winter, Ferrari made a significant decision: Adami was moved into a role within the team's academy programme, with Santi stepping in to work alongside Hamilton on the pit wall — initially on an interim basis.

Canada: Hamilton's Best Ferrari Weekend Yet

After claiming P2 at the Canadian Grand Prix — his strongest result in Ferrari red — Hamilton was fulsome in his praise for Santi and the wider engineering group. As we reported following the race, the result was the product of considerable behind-the-scenes effort from Hamilton and those around him.

"I chose a different set-up this weekend through just ciphering through the data, working really well with my engineer," Hamilton said. "He's absolutely awesome and I'm really loving working with him."

"And my number two did a fantastic job this weekend and helped me really pull more performance out of the car, getting into a much sweeter place."

Hamilton also pointed to a broader sense of freedom in the cockpit, one that has been noticeably absent for much of his first year at the Scuderia.

"I was able to attack all the corners finally. And as I said, there's a lot of changes that I've had to ask for, and Fred [Vasseur]'s been super supportive and again also moving mountains in order to make me comfortable. It's finally starting to show in my performance. So, thank you to the team."

Juan Pablo Montoya also weighed in on the transformation, arguing that Hamilton's new engineers are finally listening to him — and that Canada proved it.

Hamilton's Own Admission of the Risk

While the Canadian GP result painted an encouraging picture, Hamilton had been candid earlier in the season about the complications the mid-year arrangement could create. He acknowledged that the temporary nature of the Santi partnership meant yet another adjustment period during a critical phase of the championship.

"Firstly, with Riccardo it was a pretty difficult decision to make, and I'm really, really grateful for all the effort he put in last year, and his patience — it was a difficult year for us all," Hamilton said at the time.

"It's actually quite a difficult era, because it's not long-term, the solution that I currently have — it's only a few races, and so early on into the season it's going to all be switching up again and I'll have to learn to work with someone new."

"So that's detrimental for me too, [going into] a season where you want to arrive with people that have done multiple seasons, that have been through thick and thin, and I can't. But it is the situation that I'm faced with, and I'll try and do the best that I can. The team is trying to do the best they can to make it as seamless as possible."

Those were measured, honest words — a driver aware of the challenge ahead, but determined to make it work regardless.

Vasseur Backs Hamilton's Drive

Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur was equally bullish about what he saw in Montreal, highlighting Hamilton's confidence and consistency across the entire weekend.

"It was a very strong performance," Vasseur said. "Conditions [were] mega difficult. If you were losing power, you were struggling to recover and to come back, and he was able to push from the beginning to the end."

"He was in confidence and did a very strong, strong race and strong weekend overall. We know what we are doing, we know that we have a clear target, a clear goal. We are pushing together as a team. Then you can write whatever you want."

For Hamilton, the performance in Canada — including a superb late overtake on Max Verstappen — represented the clearest sign yet that the pieces are beginning to fall into place. Whether the momentum can be sustained as the season develops will be one of the defining storylines of Ferrari's 2026 campaign.