Ferrari F1 Makes Huge Change To Lewis Hamilton's Team as Race Engineer Pulled

Lewis Hamilton will start the 2026 Formula 1 season with a new race engineer at Ferrari after Riccardo Adami was reassigned to another job within the Scuderia organisation.

The seven-time champion’s first year in the Italian team was always going to be difficult after spending 12 years at Mercedes, where his relationship with British race engineer Peter "Bono" Bonnington grew into one of the most successful partnerships the sport had ever seen.

Adami, a Ferrari engineer who has previously worked trackside with four-time champion Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz, seemed to clash with the 41-year-old during their maiden year together. While the two shared success at the sprint race of the Chinese Grand Prix race weekend, their relationship was a subject of speculation as the two continued to butt heads throughout the season.

After what was a lackluster season for Hamilton, finishing sixth in the drivers’ standings behind his team-mate and being outqualified by the Monegasque 19–5, it comes as no surprise that the Italian outfit has made serious changes going into the new regulations.

Miami saw Hamilton's frustration at a poor strategy broadcast in real time, with the radio traffic becoming yet another talking point.

And to make matters worse, Hamilton failed to finish on the podium during the whole season for the first time in his career, while Ferrari finished fourth in the constructors' standings. Now, there is a lot of pressure from higher-ups to get 2026 right.

Ferrari has now confirmed it has moved Adami into an academy and testing role, with the driver’s engineer yet to be confirmed.

"Scuderia Ferrari HP announces that Riccardo Adami has moved to a new role within the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy as Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy and Test Previous Cars Manager, where his extensive trackside experience and Formula 1 expertise contributes to the development of future talent and to strengthening performance culture across the program.

"The appointment of the new Race Engineer for car #44 will be announced in due course."

Ferrari is to roll out its 2026 package on 23 January ahead of pre-season testing, with a 24-race season beginning in Australia on 8 March under the new engine regulations.

Newsweek

This story was originally published January 16, 2026 at 5:18 PM.