Scuderia Ferrari HP have confirmed that Lewis Hamilton will begin the 2026 Formula 1 season with a new race engineer, after Riccardo Adami was moved into a different role within the team just weeks before the opening round.
Adami, who previously worked with Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel, has been reassigned to Ferrari’s Driver Academy and Testing of Previous Cars programme, where he will focus on nurturing young talent and strengthening performance culture across the organisation.
The change follows a deeply disappointing debut campaign for Hamilton in red. The seven-time world champion failed to register a grand prix podium for the first time in his career, finishing sixth in the championship standings, 86 points behind teammate Charles Leclerc. His only victory came in the sprint race in China, which was the highlight of an otherwise forgettable season and did not mask the absence of podiums in main races.
While Ferrari’s car lacked competitiveness, Hamilton also struggled to get to grips with its behaviour, a problem compounded by repeated communication issues with Adami over team radio. These tensions were evident from the opening race in Australia, when Hamilton lost patience and told his engineer: “Leave me to it.”
Radio confusion resurfaced later in the season, notably at Monaco, where Hamilton questioned the team’s handling of pace information, and again in Miami, where frustrated exchanges underlined the growing disconnect between driver and pit wall. These moments stood in sharp contrast to Hamilton’s long-standing partnership with Peter Bonnington at Mercedes, who worked with him during all six of his world championships and is now race engineer to Kimi Antonelli.
In a statement, Scuderia Ferrari HP said: “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 programme.”
The team added that the appointment of Hamilton’s new race engineer for car number 44 will be announced “in due course”.
Ferrari are set to unveil their 2026 car on 23 January, ahead of the first pre-season test in Barcelona. The new Formula 1 season begins with the Australian Grand Prix on March 6–8, giving Hamilton limited time to build a new working relationship as the sport enters a major technical regulation era.
