Seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton appears set to continue his unconventional approach at Scuderia Ferrari after an encouraging display during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend in Montreal.
Hamilton delivered one of his strongest qualifying performances of the 2026 season during Sprint Qualifying at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, finishing among the leading contenders and showing pace that allowed him to challenge the front-running Mercedes drivers for much of the session. The performance came after the British driver made the notable decision to avoid Ferrari’s simulator preparation ahead of the race weekend.
The 41-year-old admitted earlier in the week that he had grown frustrated with the disconnect between Ferrari’s simulator data and the behaviour of the SF-26 on real circuits. Instead of spending hours in Maranello’s state-of-the-art simulator, Hamilton focused on engineering meetings, race analysis and studying previous performance data.
That alternative preparation method appeared to pay off immediately in Canada.
Speaking after Sprint Qualifying, Hamilton described the session as the best he had felt inside the Ferrari all season and hinted that abandoning simulator work could become his preferred method moving forward. The veteran driver explained that recent simulator sessions often sent him in the “wrong direction” with setup choices, leaving him struggling to find confidence once he arrived at the track.
Hamilton’s frustrations became more noticeable following a difficult Miami Grand Prix, where he admitted Ferrari’s pre-weekend setup simulations failed to match the car’s real-world characteristics. With sprint weekends offering limited practice time, Hamilton believed the inaccurate preparation made it harder to recover performance during competitive sessions.
The Canadian Grand Prix weekend, however, provided renewed optimism. Hamilton looked significantly more comfortable with the car balance and managed to outperform team-mate Charles Leclerc in a competitive session for the first time since China earlier in the season.
Ferrari insiders are reportedly continuing to work on improving correlation between the simulator and track data, but Hamilton’s latest comments suggest the Briton may rely more heavily on experience and instinct rather than virtual preparation for upcoming races.
Despite questions surrounding Ferrari’s competitiveness in 2026, Hamilton has remained committed to the Italian team and recently dismissed speculation about retirement, insisting he remains fully motivated to help return Ferrari to championship-winning form.
Canada may now prove to be a turning point in Hamilton’s season — and potentially in the way one of Formula 1’s greatest drivers prepares for race weekends.