“Lewis Couldn’t Do This”: Kimi Antonelli’s Audacious Overtake on Alex Albon Tips Fans’ Opinion Against Hamilton

Two of the most anticipated moments at the 2025 Australian GP involved fresh starts for two drivers. Kimi Antonelli made his F1 debut with Mercedes, stepping in for Lewis Hamilton, who began his highly awaited journey with Ferrari following last year’s blockbuster move.

Ferrari was initially considered the faster team. However, Mercedes showed stronger pace on race day, and Antonelli, despite starting P16, delivered a brilliant drive, gaining 12 positions and making his first outing truly memorable.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Hamilton, who finished P10 after a frustrating race. The only notable moments from his outing were his back-and-forth exchanges with race engineer Riccardo Adami, which made headlines — not the ones Hamilton or Ferrari would have wanted.

Antonelli, on the other hand, impressed on his way to P4, pulling off a stunning overtake on Williams’ Alex Albon into Turn 9. The move left the F1 community in awe, especially since Hamilton had struggled to get past the Thai-British driver.

“Lewis couldn’t do this all race…” a fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Fans were full of praise for the 18-year-old. However, since Antonelli had taken Hamilton’s seat at Mercedes, comparisons were inevitable, with the seven-time world champion’s struggles against Albon becoming a recurring topic. “Meanwhile, Lewis was stuck behind Albon for 75% of the race. Huge upgrade for Mercedes,” another fan remarked.

In all fairness though, the W16 looked to be faster than the Ferrari SF25. And some couldn’t help but wonder if Hamilton was regretting leaving Mercedes already.

These reactions were likely exaggerated. It’s still early in the season, and Ferrari has plenty of time to turn things around. One key area both Hamilton and the team will aim to improve is their strategic decision-making, which proved chaotic in Melbourne.

Hamilton experiences Ferrari’s strategic mishaps

Since taking over as team principal in 2023, Fred Vasseur has worked hard to address Ferrari’s long-standing strategic missteps. The team’s pit-wall decisions were once a frequent source of ridicule in the paddock with the likes of Max Verstappen taking open digs. It also often cost them crucial results and left drivers frustrated.

Under Vasseur’s leadership, Ferrari had shown significant improvement, operating much more efficiently over the past two seasons. However, those familiar struggles resurfaced with Hamilton behind the wheel of the SF-25 on Sunday.

Ferrari appeared indecisive. While most teams switched to wet tires as heavy rain hit, the Maranello engineers hesitated, opting to stay on slicks. By the time they realized their mistake a lap later, it was too late—both drivers had already lost several positions.

Vasseur will be eager to eliminate these issues starting this weekend. If Ferrari hopes to mount a serious title challenge and end its championship drought since 2008, they cannot afford to let these mistakes hold them back.