Prior to the Belgian Grand Prix, Ferrari hosted a filming day to test out their new rear suspension, which many hope will bring them closer to McLaren. After the test, the team were cautiously optimistic about the results, but Lewis Hamilton still remains wary.
On Thursday, Hamilton spoke to the media and was asked about the new suspension. He responded by saying it felt “the same.”
Lewis Hamilton’s not getting his hopes up
It’s been a while since Ferrari has made meaningful upgrades to its 2025 car, but this weekend, they’re introducing a new rear suspension that they hope will help with ride height issues and provide more setup options. After their test earlier this week, the team was optimistic, but Hamilton doesn’t share the same belief.
“[It felt] the same as it did the weeks before. It was a photo shoot day, basically. So we did like 10 laps or whatever – 14 laps of filming. It was not a test,” Hamilton told the media.
“We’ll get to test the suspension [on Friday], and I’m sure there’s going to be learnings from it. We’ll figure out how to fine-tune it and try to extract performance from it. On the simulator, there’s no difference, but I’m sure across different circuits, perhaps there’ll be benefits.”
While Hamilton may not be the most optimistic about the new upgrades, the team seems confident that the new suspension will make the SF-25 quicker. They likely won’t catch McLaren, but if all goes well, this upgrade could help them secure P2 in the constructors’ for the second consecutive season.
Ferrari still lacks pace after FP1 in Spa
Ferrari deployed its new rear suspension for the first time during a Formula 1 race weekend on Friday morning during free practice 1. With only one practice session this weekend due to the sprint, this was a critical session for them to collect data.
The sole practice session of the weekend completed! ✅ pic.twitter.com/35RYaUDxSp
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) July 25, 2025
Both cars quickly hit the track with the upgraded suspension. Charles Leclerc did 22 laps around Spa, while Lewis Hamilton did 24. Leclerc was the quicker of the two, but still finished .906 seconds off the pace set by Oscar Piastri in the McLaren. Hamilton wasn’t too far behind his teammate, but was over a second off the pace.
Practice sessions don’t always tell the whole truth because you never know what kind of setup or engine mode teams are running, but sprint qualifying and the sprint race will really give us a good idea of just how much the new rear suspension has helped the SF-25.
