The 2026 F1 Dutch Grand Prix was a masterclass in incompetence. The silly stunt by Charles Leclerc at the end was really dumb - had he let Lewis Hamilton get by George Russell in the last 2 laps, Leclerc could have followed. Charles Leclerc’s hard drive between his ears doesn’t have a lot of compute, unfortunately - some say Charles is the modern-day Jean Alesi. Let's not forget that Lewis Hamilton had the pace for a P2 by the midway point of the race, and he could have possibly dragged Charles into a P3 for more team points...
Over half the season is done and Lewis Hamilton is still the only driver to complete 100% of all racing laps AND score points in every race Why would Scuderia Ferrari sign a seven-time F1 champion like Lewis Hamilton, the premier driver of the last 20 years for a reported $60 million a year if they aren't going to back him as the number-one driver at the very moment he is second in the championship standings, behind Kimi Antonelli and his Mercedes?
Especially knowing that Charles Leclerc, the last of the wall benders, tends to make costly mistakes at the worst possible moments, Ferrari should be thinking strategically. Hamilton is genuinely in a position to challenge for the championship; why wouldn't Ferrari give its $60 million a year seven-time world champion the clearest possible path to maximize his points?
For Scuderia Ferrari, F1, and Liberty Media, the biggest shareholder ROI is Ferrari winning the Drivers’ Championship with an 8-time champion. They need to back Lewis Hamilton. It’s business. Lewis = 8-time narrative: First driver ever to hit 8. That’s historic, not just a championship.
Ferrari + Hamilton = 2 biggest brands in F1 colliding. Merch, sponsorships, TV ratings, stock price for Ferrari and Liberty Media all spike.
Liberty Media wants storylines. "Hamilton ends Ferrari’s 18-year WDC drought" prints money for years to come. Ferrari’s problem the last 3 years hasn’t been car pace; it’s been strategy + pressure. Hamilton brings: race craft, tire management, and ZERO panic under title pressure.
From a shareholder view, paying him $50M is cheaper than losing $500M in brand value from another P2/P3 season. But shareholders don’t care about garage politics. They care about WDC trophies and stock tickers. For Liberty: Hamilton in red fighting for WDC8 is the Super Bowl every 2 weeks. For Ferrari, it’s the fastest way to turn heritage into revenue. For shareholders: It’s the highest probability bet on the grid right now.
If Ferrari doesn’t go all-in on him, they’re leaving money and history on the table. They didn't spend that kind of money to treat Hamilton as an equal passenger in a two-car strategy - they signed him to win Formula 1 championships! We can count on Ferrari to seize defeat from the jaws of victory every time. Perhaps now is a good moment for Benedetto Vigna, John Elkann, and Fred Vasseur to wake up before the season is done and back Hamilton so Ferrari can win again!
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