Lewis Hamilton’s mother has supported him throughout his F1 career (Image: Getty)
has revealed that his mother, Carmen Larbalestier, expressed her happiness to see him on track during his first test at Fiorano after joining . The Brit’s mum, step-mum, and father, Anthony Hamilton, were all present at the circuit for his first outing in the legendary Scuderia red. Hamilton’s move to marked the realisation of a lifelong dream, and has reinvigorated the seven-time world champion after the toughest season of his F1 career with in 2024.
The move has also benefitted his family, who have been present in Fiorano, and in Melbourne for his first Grand Prix with the team. Revealing his mother Carmen’s reaction, Hamilton told : “My parents sacrificed everything for me, mom let me live with dad so I could finance my racing career; so she gave up a child, and it was hard.
“It’s the first time in a long time that she is happy to see me racing, she is because I moved to . In Fiorano, I asked her: ‘Are you happy?’ And she said yes. And I said: ‘But how? You’re never happy when I’m on the track.’ Then we hugged.”
For Hamilton, the novelty surrounding his move has not worn off as the season gets underway. The Brit learnt the ropes of the SF-25 under race weekend conditions on Friday in free practice, and qualified just two-tenths behind team-mate Charles Leclerc on Saturday.
Hamilton’s switch has generated huge hype in the F1 paddock (Image: Getty)
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After FP2 on Friday, he explained: “Firstly, it has been a super exciting build-up to this week, and it felt amazing to get out there and be in a here. Honestly, the car felt so much different to anything I’ve ever experienced coming to this track, so it took a little bit of bedding in through P1.”
While the end result for Hamilton in qualifying was a respectable grid slot compared to Leclerc, were less than pleased by their performance. Their drivers will line up in P7 and P8 for the Grand Prix, starting behind both and .
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However, despite the challenges ahead of him, Hamilton was positive. “I had a really good time out there today,” he told Sky Sports F1. “Everything’s been a first this weekend. My first P1 with , my first practice sessions and first qualifying – and it’s been a lot of work to really adapt to this car.
“It’s so much different here to what I’ve experienced in the past, but it’s been interesting. I mean, I definitely didn’t expect us to be… I didn’t know that I would be nine-tenths off or eight-tenths off today, but there is a lot to dissect, for sure.”