Staggering Lewis Hamilton low recalled after major bounce back: 'It was extraordinary'

Martin Brundle has recalled just how low Lewis Hamilton became in his first campaign with Ferrari, describing what the seven-time world champion was saying as "extraordinary".

Hamilton's first season with the Scuderia last year was borderline disastrous. The Briton failed to secure a single podium, struggled over one lap and was comfortably adrift of Charles Leclerc on a regular basis.

Much of his difficulty was linked to not having been involved in the initial development of the SF-25, while he was heavily involved in the design of this year's SF-26.

After going from referring to himself as "not good enough anymore" last season to now being a title contender in 2026, Hamilton has undergone a staggering turnaround in both performance and confidence.

He has become a leading force in Ferrari's car development and is reaping the rewards, in a similar fashion to how vital he was to Mercedes' dominance during the turbo-hybrid era.

Hamilton has become supremely confident, is often quicker than Leclerc and is genuinely a threat to his former team in the drivers' title fight at this weekend's British Grand Prix.

Discussing Hamilton starting to lead Ferrari in the same way he led Mercedes with car development, Brundle told Sky F1: "Yeah, and why wouldn't you listen to him? 

"He's been there, seen it, done it and won it. I'm sure Ferrari works in different ways to an extent. There's going to be the language barrier and just finding a new way of doing things.

"It's just that Lewis got so down last year, didn't he? He was struggling so much and saying things like, 'I'm not good enough anymore.' I mean, it was extraordinary. 

"But his emotions have completely changed, and you can see him relishing it now, relishing getting out on track and driving his car. He looks great when he is out on track."