Hamilton reveals if iconic ‘hammer-time’ radio message will be used at Ferrari

Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton has revealed the fate of his famous 'hammer-time' radio message and if it will be utilised at Ferrari.

Hamilton has joined the Italian squad this year following a successful 12-year stint at Mercedes.

It was at the Brackley-based squad where Hamilton formed a strong partnership with his race engineer Peter Bonnington.

Bonnington, who is often referred to as 'Bono', was Hamilton's link to the entire team during the race weekends when he was behind the wheel.

Bonnington often told Hamilton “it's hammer-time”, which was an instruction for Hamilton to increase his pace at a critical moment for the outcome of the grand prix.

However, it was unsure if the term would carry over to Ferrari, with Hamilton suggesting it will not be the case.

“I haven’t spoken to my engineer about that,” Hamilton said.

“I don’t know how it would sound with an Italian accent, so I’ll have to find an Italian word, probably. We’ll probably find something new.”

Hamilton reveals notes to understand Italian terms

Ferrari largely consists of Italian staff with the team having deep roots in the culture of the European country.

Hamilton has been learning Italian since signing for the team and often has to refer to his personal notes to understand what part of the car the engineers are discussing.

“The effect is slightly different and the names they have are different,” Hamilton said. “’Anti-roll bar’ is still ‘anti-roll bar’

"Some of the other parts of the geometry, there are different words for it.

“I’ve got it on my computer and I’m studying it each day and night to make sure I understand when they talk about these different components.

“I’ve done 12 years in another place where we talked about the same thing all the time.

“So I was used to it, I knew exactly what they were meaning. “But every time they [Ferrari] mention [something] in a debrief I’m like: ‘What part is this? Okay, it’s this part.’

“It’s part of the learning process and that’s what makes it exciting, because it’s all new.”