Verstappen's Vegas-Themed Christmas Gift & Hamilton Cleared of 2025 Blame
Max Verstappen's Las Vegas victory was immortalized on a Christmas T-shirt, while a former Ferrari engineer pointed to the team, not Lewis Hamilton, as the main culprit for the Briton's difficult 2025 season.
A former Ferrari engineer has shifted the blame for Lewis Hamilton's tough 2025 season onto the team, stating they failed to provide a competitive car for the seven-time champion. Meanwhile, off-track, Max Verstappen received a memorable Christmas gift commemorating his dominant Las Vegas Grand Prix win, complete with a celebratory middle finger gesture. These contrasting stories highlight the ongoing narratives of team performance and driver personality as the F1 world looks toward the 2026 season.
Why it matters:
The analysis of Hamilton's struggles is a significant development in the ongoing story of his high-profile move to Ferrari. Assigning primary blame to the team's machinery and structure, rather than the driver, protects Hamilton's legacy and places immense pressure on the Scuderia to deliver. It frames his difficult adaptation period not as a personal failure, but as a consequence of the team's inability to provide a championship-caliber car, a narrative that will follow Ferrari into the critical 2026 regulations overhaul.
The details:
- Hamilton's Ferrari Struggles: Luigi Mazzola, a former engineer who worked closely with Michael Schumacher at Ferrari, told NewsF1 that the team failed to give Hamilton a "consistent and competitive tool" to perform at his best.
- Engineer Defended: Mazzola also defended race engineer Riccardo Adami, arguing that communication issues heard over team radio were not solely his fault but a symptom of the wider problems with the car and team operations.
- Verstappen's Christmas Gift: Max Verstappen's girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, revealed his present on Instagram—a T-shirt celebrating his Las Vegas GP victory.
- A Controversial Design: The shirt features an image of Verstappen on the podium with the trophy, wearing the city's signature oversized sunglasses, and raising his middle finger, a gesture that became an iconic moment from his dominant win.
What's next:
All eyes will be on Ferrari as they develop their 2026 car, with the expectation that they must provide a machine capable of allowing Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to fight for the championship. For Verstappen and Red Bull, the focus will be on building on the late-season momentum and closing the performance gap to ensure their 2026 challenger can return them to the front of the grid.