Lewis Hamilton Comments on Black Ferrari F1 2025 Livery Change Amid Plans for ‘Impact Work’

The rumor that Lewis Hamilton will pressure Ferrari to change to a black livery after he joins from Mercedes for the 2025 Formula One season has been shot down.

When Hamilton revealed earlier this year that he will be joining Ferrari on a multi-year contract starting in Formula One 2025, he shocked the Formula One world and put an end to his long and fruitful relationship with Mercedes.

Lewis Hamilton to leave Mercedes and join Ferrari for 2025 Formula 1 season  | F1 News | Sky Sports

Lewis Hamilton will not advocate for a black Ferrari F1 2025 livery.

Since making his McLaren debut in 2007, Hamilton has made 341 appearances, and the German manufacturer’s engines have powered each and every one of them. The British driver has won six of his joint record seven World Championships with Mercedes.

Mercedes and Hamilton have a close bond that goes well beyond the racetrack; in recent years, the team has steadfastly backed the 39-year-old’s efforts to increase diversity in Formula One and the motor racing business.

Lewis Hamilton tops practice timesheets as Mercedes show signs of progress  in Canada | The Independent

In an effort to combat racism, Mercedes also chose to use a mostly black livery ahead of the postponed 2020 Formula One season. The color scheme was kept for the following year.

Interpretation: Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari

Mercedes returned to an all-black car last season, combining black and silver in the design of this year’s W15 chassis, after their return to their classic silver color for F1 2022.

It has been speculated that Hamilton would try to convince Ferrari to switch from their recognizable scarlet-red livery to a black one for Formula One in 2025.

However, Hamilton touched on the subject and made a suggestion that his “impact work” with Ferrari president John Elkann is more likely to go awry during his tenure at Maranello when he spoke at the Canadian Grand Prix last weekend.

He told reporters, “I haven’t driven a black car for a while, so I probably won’t be pushing for that too early on, but no,” in response to the question of whether he had thought about asking for a black Ferrari F1 car for the upcoming season.

The status factor that made Ferrari impossible for Hamilton to turn down

We’ve obviously talked about impact work, and John and the team are really involved in philanthropy, so we’ll be collaborating closely with Mission 44 on their impact initiatives.

“I think we have to keep doing more in the sport, but it’s really exciting that we’ll be doing a lot together outside of it as well.”

Hamilton made these remarks in response to reports that the FIA, the organization that oversees Formula One, is pressing for more “distinguishable” liveries for the upcoming season due to the popularity of exposed-carbon liveries.

In an attempt to reduce weight, most teams have left significant portions of their cars unpainted since the ground-effect regulations were implemented before to the Formula One 2022 season. As a result, the majority of the cars on the grid are black.

Although the FIA is eager to avoid enacting laws pertaining to liveries, it is also eager to promote increased team communication in order to prevent excessive design overlap.

Bernie Collins, a former engineer for McLaren and Force India, asserted during an appearance on the Sky F1 podcast that teams might apply color to exposed carbon, but he cautioned that the outcome might not be as impressive as using a conventional paint job.

“I think there are ways to color carbon fiber because you can either color the resin, which would give it some color, but it won’t look as good as the paint we have right now,” the speaker stated.

What Does Lewis Hamilton Moving To Scuderia Ferrari Say About Personal  Growth? | by Ramez Al-Siddiq | Medium

Because of the resins and other factors, carbon fiber functions best when it is black. You could tint it, but I believe the result would be a very drab sheen rather than a Ferrari red.

“The major issue with color in the component, for instance, is that when you paint a sidepod on an automobile, it’s painted when it lines up and is mounted together. However, when painting at the manufacturing level, you have to be extremely certain that the paint will end up in the correct place later on in terms of the car.

Thus, you’re adding a great deal of complexity to the component’s production process.

It’s possible, in my opinion, that we begin the season with a large number of these carbon-strong liveries, and as teams figure out ways to reduce weight over the season, more and more paint may be applied again.

“Because when teams gain experience and dependability, or whatever the situation may be, they begin to develop methods to make the car lighter. The car is often the heaviest at the start of the year.

“And maybe teams will start down that path as well, as we get more and more into the regulations.”