Lewis Hamilton will have a new race engineer for the 2026 Formula 1 season, as Riccardo Adami moves to a new role within Ferrari's Driver Academy. The announcement, made by Ferrari, marks the end of Adami's single season stint as Hamilton's race engineer.

Adami will transition to the role of "Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy and Test Previous Cars Manager". In this position, his Formula 1 expertise and extensive trackside experience will be used to contribute to the development of future talent and to strengthen the performance culture across the program. Ferrari thanked Adami for his commitment and contribution to his trackside role and wished him success in his new position. The announcement of Hamilton's new race engineer is expected to be made in due course.

The decision to change Hamilton's engineering setup comes after what has been described as a challenging first campaign for Hamilton in red. Although Hamilton and Adami secured an early sprint race win in China, the season was marked by moments of apparent tension. There were instances of radio exchanges that exposed Hamilton's frustrations and confusion. One such instance occurred in Monaco when Hamilton asked Adami, "Are you upset with me or something?" after seemingly not receiving a response.

Despite the challenges, Hamilton had previously dismissed speculation that he and Adami did not have a good working relationship, stating that Adami had been "amazing to work with" and is a "great guy". Ferrari's head of track engineering, Matteo Togninalli, also suggested that the situation appeared worse from the outside.

Adami's career in F1 began with Minardi in the early 2000s, and he remained with the team as it became Toro Rosso, engineering drivers like Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo. He joined Ferrari in 2015, initially working with Vettel before partnering with Carlos Sainz and then Hamilton. The move from such a pivotal role for Adami indicates that Ferrari is responding to Hamilton's desire for changes within his personal team. In Abu Dhabi, Hamilton hinted at the need for adjustments to optimize teamwork, including potentially moving people into different positions.

With the 2026 season approaching, Hamilton will need to forge a new working relationship with his next race engineer. This will be crucial as he prepares for pre-season testing in Barcelona and the launch of Ferrari's 2026 car. How quickly and effectively Hamilton can integrate with his new engineer may prove critical to his success in the upcoming season and beyond.