Lewis Hamilton has vowed to “keep going, even when it’s difficult” in a social media post ahead of Formula 1‘s return from its summer break this weekend.

The Brit has cut a miserable figure for much of his first season with Ferrari, amid a string of poor results by his own usually high standard.

Hamilton has encountered a plethora of issues with the Scuderia’s SF-25 this year, seeing him take just one solitary victory, coming in the China Sprint Race.

In a full Grand Prix, Hamilton has yet to take a podium finish, with four fourth-place finishes the best he has offered so far.

Over much of the season, he has been unable to match team-mate Charles Leclerc, his misery culminating in a Q2 exit from qualifying for the last round in Hungary.

It was this that led to a shocking post-qualifying comment that Ferrari should “change driver” after his “useless” performance, with Leclerc taking pole position in the same car.

Some have also speculated whether the 40-year-old’s time in the sport is at an end, with former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone suggesting possible replacements for him.

But taking to his Instagram ahead of this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, Hamilton conveyed a sense of rediscovered motivation.

“I’m always so grateful for this time, for the opportunity to rest and recharge,” he wrote.

“There’s a lot I’ve been meditating on. Every one of us is up against so much, both individually and globally.

“It’s so important that we embrace the light of truth and love and take care of ourselves so that we can better take care of others.

“We can’t look away. We have to keep going, even when it’s difficult.”

Ferrari, which has managed to produce an upgrade for its floor and rear suspension – two areas causing performance and results to suffer – will be hopeful of giving Hamilton a car able to compete starting in Zandvoort.

Hamilton currently sits sixth in the Drivers’ Championship with 109 points, 40 off fifth-placed Leclerc.

READ MORE – Ferrari teases possible historic F1 celebration at Italian GP

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Ferrari is reportedly set to celebrate the 50th anniversary of one of the most momentous moments in the Formula 1 team’s history at next week’s Italian Grand Prix.

The Scuderia has not enjoyed the happiest of seasons in 2025, with the team so far yet to score a single Grand Prix victory.

Ferrari’s SF-25 challenger has been a continuing source of problems for the team, with Lewis Hamilton’s China Sprint Race win the team’s only triumph of the year.

Despite lying second in the Constructors’ Championship, Ferrari is currently a whopping 299 points behind runaway leaders McLaren.

But the team will be buoyed by its usual partisan support at Monza, where F1 arrives next after this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix.

According to Italian publication Auto Racer, the team is set to mark 50 years since the late Niki Lauda won the World Championship in its colours.

It was at Monza that year that Lauda finished third to secure the first of his three Drivers’ championships, with team-mate Clay Regazzoni winning the race.

Across the summer break, Ferrari has been documenting Lauda’s triumph on its social media platforms, further hinting that the celebration will take place.

Its content was concluded with a brief clip of Hamilton and team-mate Charles Leclerc, followed by the caption: “Monza 2025: Coming soon.”

“When I got to Monza, it was different,” the Monegasque says in the video.

Hamilton, whose decision to join Mercedes was largely down to Lauda’s influence and to whom he was close, added: “The tifosi are just… you see them there in the biggest and fullest force.

“It’s such a privilege and an honour to be able to be racing for this team.”

Ferrari may sport a special livery for the race, a tradition of the previous two seasons. In 2023, a special colour scheme was released to celebrate its Le Mans 24 Hours triumph.

And in 2024, a tweaked livery was used along with Leclerc and then-team-mate Carlos Sainz sporting black overalls to celebrate the use of carbon fibre in F1.

READ MORE – Ex-F1 chief urges Ferrari to sign rookie as long-term successor to Lewis Hamilton

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Former Formula 1 chief Bernie Ecclestone has urged Ferrari to move quickly to secure the services of Gabriel Bortoleto, describing the young driver as “worth his weight in gold”.

Making waves in F1 with midfield outfit Sauber, the 20-year-old claimed his maiden points finish at the Austrian Grand Prix, crossing the line in eighth place ahead of veteran team-mate Nico Hulkenberg.

Despite retiring early at Silverstone, Bortoleto kept his momentum heading into races in Belgium and Hungary. He secured back-to-back top-10 finishes, quickly marking himself as one of the sport’s most promising young talents.

The reigning Formula 2 champion is one of seven rookies to have made their F1 debut this season, impressing with his pace, consistency, and composure against more experienced competitors.

So strong has his start been that Ferrari has been urged to act swiftly to secure his signature from the Swiss outfit.

Ecclestone, who owns a farm in Bortoleto’s native Brazil, played a role in helping the family navigate the youngster’s entry into F1. He praised Bortoleto’s recent performances at the Hungaroring before the summer break.

“I’m glad we were able to help the Bortoleto family with their entry into Formula 1,” he said, according to Swiss-German outlet Blick. “The boy is worth his weight in gold!”

“Bortoleto’s strong performances in a midfield team like Sauber should really wake Ferrari up now. The next driver question for the Italians needs to be resolved with the Brazilian.”

Ecclestone on the rising talents ready to take Hamilton’s seat at Ferrari

The British business magnate’s praise of Bortoleto came amid broader comments on the F1 grid. He is criticising Lewis Hamilton and suggested that the Scuderia should be keeping an eye on other emerging talents.

“If I could steal him, I’d take Isack Hadjar from Racing Bulls,” he told MailOnline. “He has done super well in his first year and is a great guy.

“I also rate our friend from Brazil [Bortoleto]. He is talented. Both of them are sensible, too.”

Ecclestone suggested that Hamilton, a seven-time F1 World Champion, might be due for a break from the sport.

“But like a lot of leading sports personalities when they reach the top, there is only one way to go, and it’s not a good direction,” he added. “It’s only down.

“They get tired. Lewis is tired. He’s been doing what he is doing forever. He needs a rest from it for good, a total reset to do something completely different.

“‘He may not think it but he will soon get used to doing other stuff away from motor racing in retirement. I think he should have done it a while ago.

“‘The guy is not a cheat. But he would be cheating himself if he goes on. He should stop now.”

READ MORE – Ex-F1 supremo urges Ferrari to sign Red Bull-backed driver to replace Lewis Hamilton

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has repudiated Toto Wolff’s suggestion that Lewis Hamilton‘s struggles are linked to his driving style not suiting the current Formula 1 cars.

Hamilton has been unable to replicate the success he sustained with the previous generation cars, managing two victories since F1 reverted to ground effect in 2022.

But while that can be attributed to Mercedes enduring a downturn since the change, Hamilton’s level has also dipped when compared against his team-mate’s results.

The Briton’s woes have been most pronounced in qualifying, an area where he used to be renowned as a specialist with an unequalled 104 pole positions to his name.

Mercedes Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin addressed that during 2024, a season in which George Russell out-qualified Hamilton 19 times in 24 rounds.

“Lewis hasn’t disguised the fact that Saturdays were his tough day,” Shovlin said last summer.

“He’s struggled with this whole generation of car, really, not suiting his style. He’s been working on how he drives.

“It’s particularly [that] he struggled on the single lap. So his long run pace is always there and that’s been really useful.

“It’s more just the way that he wants to attack a corner, when you do that, then the car would snap to oversteer. You start to build tyre temperature.”

Ferrari and Mercedes disagree on Hamilton decline

Hamilton’s move to a new environment has not provided an instant upturn as he has experienced various morale-denting setbacks since making the switch to Ferrari.

The seven-time champion claimed that he is “useless” as he succumbed to a Q2 exit at the Hungarian Grand Prix, while team-mate Charles Leclerc took pole position.

However, Mercedes Team Principal Wolff has tipped Hamilton, 40, to be reinvigorated at Ferrari next season when sweeping new technical regulations are introduced.

“Lewis has unfinished business in Formula 1,” Wolff told media including Motorsport Week.

“In the same way that Mercedes underperformed over this latest set of regulations since 2022, he kind of never got happy with ground effect cars, in the same way, it beats him. Maybe it’s linked to driving style.

“So, he shouldn’t go anywhere. Next year, brand new cars, completely different to drive, new power units that need an intelligent way of managing the energy.

“So, that’s absolutely on for Lewis, and I hope he stays on for many more years, and certainly next year is going to be an important one.”

Vasseur, though, does not subscribe to the notion that Hamilton’s aggressive late-braking approach isn’t compatible with the contemporary ground effect challengers.

Asked whether this ruleset has been Hamilton’s ‘war’, Vasseur told Auto Motor und Sport: “I don’t think so.

“If we had had bouncing, maybe. But even though we are always on the verge of bouncing, we now have it under control to some extent.”

READ MORE – Ferrari admits Lewis Hamilton can ‘make things worse’ when he ‘exaggerates problems’

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has conceded that Lewis Hamilton‘s Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix disqualification triggered its early-season troubles, admitting: “We lost our way”.

The Scuderia went into this year’s campaign confident it had, at least, the second-fastest package after McLaren, and was in a position to challenge for results.

But despite currently lying in second place in the Constructors’ Championship, it has not been a reflection of some of the issues the team has had to contend with.

Neither Charles Leclerc nor Lewis Hamilton have been able to score a single Grand Prix victory, the latter yet to even make the podium.

The crux of its issues largely came down to the floor and rear suspension of its SF-25 challenger.

A lack of rigidity in the suspension worked in tandem with the floor to cause a myriad of performance issues, which came to a head as early as the second round in Shanghai.

After Hamilton took victory in the Sprint in Shanghai, the Brit was then sensationally disqualified a day later after the Grand Prix for excessive plank wear.

The low ride height on which the car was run worked fine in the Sprint, but the full Grand Prix distance proved to be too far for the underside of the car.

This led to consistent higher ride heights at subsequent races, rendering an enforced lack of competitiveness for both Leclerc and Hamilton.

Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, Vasseur was asked where Ferrari has lacked compared to the all-conquering McLaren and its demonstrably dominant MCL39.

“McLaren is outstanding at tyre management, especially in wet or hot conditions,” the Frenchman replied.

“The disqualifications threw us off track a bit. We had to leave ourselves a safety margin in terms of ground clearance.

“As we all know, these cars are extremely sensitive when it comes to ground clearance. Every millimetre is a position on the starting grid.

“If you don’t have full control over the vehicle height, it affects the car’s competitiveness.

“To solve the problem, you lose focus on other things. Preparing the tyres for qualifying, the warm-up laps, you name it.”

Vasseur concedes Ferrari has had ‘quality issues’

Prior to the shift in focus towards the 2026 cars, and the all-new rules and regulations that go with them, Ferrari was able to produce upgrades for its floor and rear suspension.

In doing so, the team has, whilst unable to find enough to match McLaren’s pace, seen an upturn in performance.

Progress even led to Leclerc bagging a stunning pole position, his and the team’s first of the season, at the last round in Hungary.

“Over the last three or four weekends, we have been able to close the gap to two tenths,” Vasseur explained.

“We had a lot of problems with the handling at the race track at the beginning of the season. There were quality issues, then the disqualifications.

“We lost our way a bit there.

“So much depends on the details and qualifying in Budapest was a good example. If you focus on the wrong things, you immediately lose a lot of ground.

“If Charles had been two tenths slower, he would have been sixth instead of first.

“It’s very difficult to know what’s important at any given moment in order to be fast.”

READ MORE – Ferrari admits Lewis Hamilton can ‘make things worse’ when he ‘exaggerates problems’

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has conceded that Lewis Hamilton can “make things worse” when he “sometimes exaggerates problems he sees” with his car in Formula 1.

Vasseur has recognised both parties “underestimated” the challenge awaiting Hamilton when he made the much-anticipated switch during the winter from Mercedes.

The Frenchman’s revelation comes as Hamilton has endured an onerous debut season with the Italian marque, one that is threatening to end without a single podium.

Hamilton experienced another setback prior to the summer break as he started outside the top 10 in Hungary, while team-mate Charles Leclerc secured pole position.

That prompted a downcast Hamilton to express that he is now “useless” and even to suggest that Ferrari should contemplate having another driver alongside Leclerc.

The Briton’s mood improved little as he did not progress in the race, leading him to disclose that things are happening behind the scenes at Ferrari “that are not great”.

Vasseur, whose relationship with Hamilton pre-dates F1, stressed that it’s important to exude calmness when the seven-time F1 champion has an emotional outburst.

Asked what he can do to ease Hamilton’s transitional phase at Ferrari, Vasseur told Auto Motor und Sport: “Stay calm.

“Build on the fact that he has already taken the first step. Don’t let things like what happened in Budapest get you down.

“Lewis is very self-critical. He is always extreme in his reactions. Sometimes he is too hard on the car, sometimes on himself.

“He wants to get the most out of himself and everyone in the team.

“You have to calm him down and explain to him that in Q2 [in Hungary] he was only a tenth behind the driver [Leclerc] who took pole position. That’s no big deal.

“The message he sends out only makes things worse.

“Most of the time, he’s only that extreme with the press. By the time he comes into the briefing room, he’s usually calmed down again. That’s just his way.

“For me, it’s no big deal. He demands a lot. From others, but also from himself. I can live with that.”

How Ferrari intends to address Hamilton struggles

Hamilton divulged that he has been sending documents to Ferrari as he endeavours to ensure that he avoids encountering the issues that have hindered him in 2025.

The ex-Mercedes driver has struggled to master the engine braking that Ferrari uses, while there have also been complications with Brembo’s revised brake materials.

Vasseur has insisted that there is not one overriding element that has impacted Hamilton, whom he has contended has a tendency to overstate any problem he feels.

“We solve the problems step by step,” he continued. “They’re not huge, they just look that way.

“If the braking system isn’t quite how the driver would like it, then maybe half a tenth is lost there.

“From the outside, it’s often difficult to quickly identify exactly where he’s losing that half-tenth.

“Such a minimal time difference can ruin your whole weekend. It can be the difference between Q2 and Q3.

“Lewis sometimes exaggerates the problems he sees in the car. The team then naturally wants to respond and everyone jumps on the problem.”

READ MORE – Ferrari makes concession over Lewis Hamilton F1 struggles

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Fred Vasseur has revealed how he felt “really angry” about the media rumours which reported he was set to lose his job as Ferrari‘s Formula 1 Team Principal.

The Frenchman was subject of increasing speculation at the start of the summer, which pointed towards a bleak and short future at the Scuderia.

Vasseur was appointed Team Principal at Maranello in 2023, and has overseen steady progress which saw them narrowly miss out on the Constructors’ title last year.

But amid a disappointing 2025 campaign, which has still yet to see the team score a Grand Prix victory, the rumour mill began to turn as fast as one of its scarlet cars.

The rumours reached a head at the Canadian Grand Prix, when Vasseur launched a furious tirade at Italian media for furthering the reports.

But the speculation was finally put to bed at the end of last month, when it was announced Vasseur had put pen to paper on a new deal to remain in charge.

Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, Vasseur reiterated his displeasure with the situation, placing the blame squarely on the media.

“Rumours caused the turmoil,” he said. “I didn’t spread them, the media did. Neither Ferrari nor I said anything.

“But today, you can’t avoid this kind of distracting noise.

“I don’t want to tar all journalists with the same brush, but with the internet reporting has become much more aggressive. There is pressure to generate clicks.”

Vasseur blasts media for additional negative Ferrari stories on Serra and Leclerc

Vasseur cited not just the stories solely focused on him, but also conveyed his annoyance with the additional stories around a senior member of the Ferrari team, and those around Charles Leclerc’s supposed unclear future.

“When these rumours first appeared in Canada, I was really angry because they went too far,” Vasseur continued.

“My technical director Loic Serra was accused of not doing a good job, but the 2025 car was practically finished when Loic started working for us.

“The story with Charles Leclerc was similar. Some people regularly wrote that Charles was going to Mercedes.

“No one cared that he repeatedly confirmed he had a long-term contract with Ferrari.

“That has an impact on the team. In Italy, people tend to react more emotionally.

“Without all this noise, my talks with Ferrari would have gone much faster.”

READ MORE – Ferrari makes concession over Lewis Hamilton F1 struggles

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Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur conceded that it “underestimated” the challenge Lewis Hamilton would face adapting to the team after his Formula 1 move from Mercedes.

Hamilton has endured a turbulent debut campaign with Ferrari, one where his results on track haven’t aligned with the mass anticipation that accompanied his switch.

The Briton was victorious on his second weekend with the side in the China Sprint Race, but he has gone the entire season to date without a Grand Prix podium in red.

That has contributed to Hamilton dropping 42 points behind Charles Leclerc, who has outraced his more experienced team-mate on all but two occasions in 14 races.

Hamilton went into the summer break having qualified outside the top 10 in both Belgium and Hungary, prompting him to state that Ferrari should look to replace him.

But with Ferrari committed to making the partnership thrive, Vasseur has recognised that both parties undervalued the time it would take Hamilton to get up to speed.

“Lewis and I, we collectively, probably underestimated the change of environment, and the fact that he spent, for me, 20 years in the same team,” he told The Race.

“McLaren was Mercedes, and then he moved to Mercedes [in 2013]: an English team [based in Brackley], same engine guys, that same culture and so on.

“So he spent 2006 to 2024, 18 years, in this environment, and then he arrived at Ferrari. And we were stupidly expecting that he will have everything under control.”

Vasseur highlighted that Hamilton is not as accustomed to changing teams as his predecessor, Carlos Sainz, whose switch to Williams marked his fourth since 2015.

“He’s not the guy who changed team every two years,” he pinpointed.

“You have guys on the grid that, if you have a look on Carlos, for example, he did Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, us and Williams in eight years.

“He changed four times. He’s used to dealing with this. Lewis was not the case.”

Why Ferrari is not worried about latest Hamilton downturn

Vasseur has stressed that he is not worried about Hamilton’s downturn, citing that slim margins derailed the progress he had been building prior to the double-header.

“Culturally speaking, there is a bigger difference between Ferrari and Mercedes than between Mercedes and McLaren. And this we underestimated,” he reiterated.

“It took Lewis four or five races to be a bit more in control. And I would say that from Canada, Spain, UK, Austria, he was there. He was.

“In Spa he had a tough weekend, but for different reasons with a difficult qualifying. But then in the race, he was very good. And [Hungary] I think it was more details.

“If you have a look at the [qualifying] classification, you see one is P1, the other is P12. But we were not far away from having Charles P11 and Lewis P12.”

Likewise, Vasseur had no problem with Hamilton’s critical remark during the Hungaroring weekend as he pinpointed that all elite-level drivers share the same mindset.

“He’s like this, and sometimes he was also like this at Mercedes,” Vasseur, who oversaw Hamilton’s title-winning GP2 season in 2005, added. “For me, it’s not a drama.

“I understand the approach of the guy. I understand the philosophy, and the fact that he’s very, very demanding with me, with the engineers, with the mechanics, but mainly with himself.

“And this, I think, everybody can perfectly accept this, as long as the driver is also demanding with himself.

“The example of Nico Hulkenberg is also a very good one. He was mega, mega demanding with all the team in F3. But he was the first one to go jogging at 6.30am in the morning.

“For the mechanics, it was OK. As long as the guy is pushing on himself, they were keen to have someone demanding of them.”

READ MORE – Fred Vasseur hits back at question over Ferrari investment in Lewis Hamilton

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McLaren CEO Zak Brown says Charles Leclerc’s qualifying prowess in Formula 1 is frequently misrepresented by his pole-to-win record, a result of Ferrari’s performance limitations.

The Monegasque driver has converted just five of his 27 career poles into victories – an 18.5 per cent conversion rate – including only one win from his last 16 pole positions.

Leclerc’s qualifying performances are often sensational, demonstrating his speed and precision over a single lap.

On race day, however, the pole-to-win statistics can give the skewed impression that he struggles to turn pace into victories.

For a driver with eight Grand Prix wins, this seems inconsistent with his talent. Brown says the discrepancy stems from the Ferrari’s limitations rather than Leclerc himself, emphasising that the 27-year-old is capable of performing at a high level on both Saturday and Sunday.

His defence of a fellow driver comes in the same context that critics have scrutinised his own McLaren driver, Lando Norris, for struggles in converting poles into wins. Brown praised Norris while highlighting the broader point about misrepresented stats.

“Because there’s another stat out there from [Charles Leclerc], who I’m a big fan of, who’s not won that many races from pole, and I don’t think that’s anything on him,” he told Racer.

“I think that’s how awesome he is over a lap and maybe can carry a car over a lap that doesn’t have the ultimate race pace. So that’s not intended to be disparaging on him at all. I think he’s a huge talent.

“But my point is kind of a good narrative, and then when that narrative goes away, no one kind of, it’s almost like the retraction’s always on the back page. And I think Lando’s in a great place.”

Driver error, strategy, or the car? A closer look at Leclerc’s pole-to-win record

A closer look at Leclerc’s pole-to-win record shows that the reasons behind his low conversion rate are far from straightforward.

There are several factors that have hindered the Ferrari driver, from questionable team strategies to moments when the car itself has let him down.

The 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix provides a clear example of the latter. Starting from the front row, Leclerc briefly led the race but dropped back after a chassis issue, eventually finishing outside the podium behind the McLarens and George Russell.

Even Leclerc’s debut pole in F1 ended in disappointment, as reliability issues at the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix denied him victory.

Team errors have also played a role. At the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, Leclerc was called into the pits from the lead for Intermediate tyres, only to be recalled again for slicks, dropping him from first to fourth.

At the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix, meanwhile, then Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel was allowed to undercut Leclerc, snatching victory right from his grasp.

Of course, not all setbacks were beyond his control. The 2022 French Grand Prix saw him crash out while leading, a rare instance where the loss stemmed from driver error rather than the team or car.

Six years ago in Austria, Leclerc was also involved in a wheel-to-wheel battle with Max Verstappen, who barged past on a recovery drive to take victory. While Leclerc may insist it wasn’t his fault, he was ultimately outmanoeuvred by the Dutchman in direct combat.

Taken together, these examples illustrate that Leclerc’s low pole-to-win ratio is the result of a complex mix of circumstances, and not a straightforward reflection of his talent or racecraft, as Brown points out.

READ MORE – How improved mental fortitude has helped Lando Norris dispel past F1 narrative

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Motorsport is often portrayed as a cold, mechanical science: engineers crunching data, drivers following strategy sheets and teams investing millions to shave off tenths of a second.

But at its heart, motor racing has always been about audacity. Some of the sport’s greatest legends are not the ones who had the best cars or the biggest budgets, but those who stared down impossible odds, made a gamble and came out victorious.

Just like the unpredictable spin of online slots, racing history is littered with stories of those who embraced risk when others played safe. Sometimes it ended in heartbreak, but other times it rewrote the record books.

James Hunt – The playboy who became Formula 1 World Champion

James Hunt (pictured above) was never meant to be the corporate-friendly face of Formula 1. He was scrappy, unpolished and more likely to be photographed with a cigarette and a pint than in the gym. When he entered the 1976 season, few believed he could seriously challenge the might of Ferrari and Niki Lauda.

But Hunt thrived on chaos. He gambled with daring overtakes, sometimes brushing wheels and dancing on the edge of disaster. The season culminated in one of the most dramatic finales in motorsport history.

Lauda, having miraculously returned after a near-fatal crash at the Nürburgring, withdrew from a rain-soaked Japanese Grand Prix. Hunt needed to finish third to take the championship. He went all-in, clawing through the field with a puncture, barely securing enough points to be crowned FIA Formula 1 World Champion by a single point.

It was a victory defined by risk, resilience and timing. The perfect metaphor for fortune favouring the bold.

Ayrton Senna at Donnington – Rain masterclass of ’93

Few drivers embodied risk like Ayrton Senna. While his three championships already cemented his place in history, one particular race in 1993 remains the stuff of legend.

The European Grand Prix at Donnington was a wet and miserable affair, the kind of conditions that terrify even seasoned pros. On the opening lap, Senna started fourth but unleashed an assault so breathtaking that it is still considered the greatest opening lap in Formula 1 history.

He passed four cars in less than a minute, carving through Michael Schumacher, Damon Hill, Alain Prost and Karl Wendlinger with a mixture of raw instinct and razor-thin margins.

That day, Senna didn’t just win a race. He showcased how intuition and daring can make miracles. It was calculated madness, a reminder that in motorsport, sometimes instinct can be worth more than strategy.

Brawn GP – The miracle of 2009

In modern motorsport, where billions back the top teams, the story of Brawn GP feels almost mythical. When Honda suddenly withdrew from Formula 1 in late 2008, the team’s staff faced unemployment. Enter Ross Brawn, who led a management buyout, rebranded the team and showed up at the first race with a car few took seriously.

Then came the shock. The BGP 001 was a rocket, aided by a controversial “double diffuser” that rival teams had overlooked. Suddenly, this supposed underfunded outfit was leading the championship.

Against all expectations, and despite limited resources, Jenson Button won six of the first seven races, riding the wave of risk that Ross Brawn had staked everything on. By the season’s end, Brawn GP had claimed both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships.

It was a Cinderella story for modern racing. proof that even in an era of corporate giants, daring innovation can still tilt the odds.

Fernando Alonso – Valencia’s masterstroke in 2012

By 2012, many thought Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari career was winding down. The car was not competitive enough to win consistently, and the championship looked out of reach. Then came the European Grand Prix at Valencia.

Starting from 11^th on the grid, Alonso needed something extraordinary. Through aggressive overtakes, perfect timing during safety cars and sheer determination, he fought his way to the front in front of his home crowd. Tears streamed down his face on the podium as the Spanish fans roared.

It wasn’t a championship win, but it was the ultimate underdog performance. Alonso had risked everything in a car that shouldn’t have been on the podium, let alone first place.

Risk, reward and the allure of the unexpected

What unites these stories is not just victory, but the willingness to embrace risk when others hesitated. Motorsport has always thrived on its unpredictability (i.e. a sudden rain shower, a mechanical gamble a daring strategy). For fans, that’s part of the allure: knowing that the odds are never fully set in stone.

It is the same thrill that draws people to games of chance. The spin of online slots, like the lap of a race, is a dance between precision and unpredictability. Sometimes the favourites win. Sometimes the outsiders change history. But in both arenas, it’s the uncertainty that keeps people coming back for more.

Why these stories still matter…

In an era where teams increasingly rely on data simulations and risk-averse strategies, these underdog tales remind us why fans fell in love with motorsport in the first place. They celebrate human daring, ingenuity and the courage to chase glory against improbable odds.

From Hunt’s chaotic championship to Brawn GP’s impossible fairytale, the legends of risk-taking endure because they capture something universal: the idea that even in the most controlled environments, fortune still favours the brave.

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