How F1 World Champion performed in his first race with Ferrari before Hamilton Debut

Most racing drivers dream of becoming Formula 1 World Champion Ferrari one day. But very little manages to change that dream into reality.

This year Lewis Hamilton The goal is to prove otherwise. His step from Mercedes Ferrari F1 is one of the most important transfer in history as it connects the most successful driver (seven world titles) with the most successful team (15 drivers and 16 constructors championships).

But Hamilton is not the first world champion to switch into killing in any way. Other title winners have also tried their luck in red – with different degrees of success.

We take a look at the first Grand Pre weekend for each of those champions – and does it predict a successful title campaign …

1956: Fangio wins a shared

Juan Manuel Fangio was already the most successful driver of Formula 1 when he moved to Ferrari for the 1956 season. He won the title in 1951 with Alpha Romeo, Masareti and Mercedes in 1954 and Mercedes in 1955.

This was a hallmark of Fangio’s career, which he brutally demanded the most competitive seats. But this marriage with Ferrari was born out of convenience rather than love, as the return of the merc from racing and the unstable finance of Masherati made Manelao their best option.

Fangio’s domestic race in Argentina was his first grand prix for Ferrari. But it did not go according to the plan: a faulty fuel pump slowed him, inspiring him to handle the team-Mate Luigi Mouso’s car at Lap 30 of 98.

Before handing over, Muso was running in fifth place. Fangio flew in search of the leaders, but after passing the time of Jean Behera’s masherati, ended it after losing time in a spin.

Then, during three laps, as half a distance in three hours of phenomenon, the forearm affected the trouble. Fangio’s other team partner Eagenio Castelloti faced a gearbox failure, Masareti of Carlos Menditugi broke a drivesfit, and an inauspicious plum of smoke developed in the wake of a car of Sterling Moss.

Fangio re -beat Behar and did a small job of moss as his engine kept tightening. Since Fangio shared his car with warts, he divided the points for victory. However, Fangio still left Argentina as the championship leader, thanks to an additional point for the fastest lap.

Mechanical troubles dogs through the entire season nor did they get with team manager Arldo Skylty; He was only persuaded to live in Ferrari when he was given a mechanic to drive his car exclusively. When a steering arm broke in Monza in the final round, and Mouso refused to hand over his car, the title of the fangio looked uncertain until Peter Collins did a decent work: Three digits for the second place in the shared car were enough to be ahead of Moss.

Fangio then moved to Masareti for 1957, where he won his fifth and final title.

1990: Retirement sets tone for prost time in Ferrari

Ellen Prost’s bitter rivalry with Erton Army McLaren Meaning something had to change. Before Prost received the 1989 World Championship on the line, he arranged for his trophy to Ferrari in the crowd after winning the Italian Grand Prix – and infected McLaren’s boss Ron Dennis.

So Prost took the number one on his Ferrari 641 at the Phoenix Street Circuit for the 1990 season opener, where unpredictable (and unusual for Arizona desert) on Saturday meant rain that the grid was determined several times from Friday-it was included in an TV-friendly session in an era before achieving this qualification. This means that Prost started in seventh place with Team-Mate Nigel Mansel 17th.

Gearbox issues initially dropped Prost to ninth place. He fought in fourth place by Lap 17, but only four laps later his gearbox gave up completely – less luxurious retirement compared to a mangel, which exit with their engine.

Prost quickly bounced back, however, Brazil – by winning the next race in the army’s home ground – and four more wins put him in a dispute against his slavery. However, his title hopes ended in the Penaltimet Race in Japan, where the army did its infamous ‘moment of madness’ in Turn 1 and evacuated both cars.

In 1991, Ferrari was not competing enough to string together with a title challenge despite the arrival of the mid-season of a new car. Internal politics was made at a point where Prost was evacuated with a truck adversely after comparing his car handling.

1996: Shumakar lost Irwin

World Champion twice with Beneton, Michael Schumacher The allegations compromised that the team was cheating and had quickly dropped its contract to go to Ferrari. There he faced the challenge of the new V10-operated F310 and Team-Mate Eddy irvinA feudal person who is known for not respecting reputation (a characteristic that earned him a punch on the head from the army).

In the season -opener in Melbourne, Irwin unprocessed Shumakar in qualifying, beating him from two and a half tenth to finish third on the grid, one place ahead of Michael. But the fact is that they were half second at the speed Williams On the front line, cars depicted the challenge in front of Ferrari in 1996.

When the race was resumed after the first-lap shunt, Shumacher initially changed the tables on his team partner and ran the third. The brake problem began then, eventually he forced him to retire and take Irwin to third place – but it would be AD’s only podium that year.

While Irwin finished only three more points and finished season 10th in Standing, Shumakar claimed three wins in F310, which was inadvertently seen in Barcelona, ​​Spa and Monza. He finished third in the championship behind major Williams drivers, Damon Hill And Jacques villainuve,

The following sessions took a tireless upward projection: From 2000 to 2004, Michael took five consecutive world championships in Red.

2010: Vetail’s misfortune is the advantage of Alonso

When McLaren’s relationship became sour and Renault’s return proved to be disappointing, Alonso turned to Ferrari in 2010 in the hope of winning the third World Championship. But his initial weekend in Bahrain began with disappointment: he gained 0.35S qualification behind the team-met. Felip wart,

In the race, Alonso got the upper hand over the wart and finished second until a spark plug failure slowed down the leader Sebstian wettelRed bull. Alonso took advantage of, rapidly beaten the sick RB6, and won 16.1.

After this initial success, Alonso did not win another race in Germany until round 11 (controversial, when Ferrari ordered an illegal team through coded message). A late season hurry of three more victories meant that he arrived in the finale in Abu Dhabi with an edge of a narrow point on the team’s team’s partner, Mark WeberAnd Vetail himself.

However, despite the presence of Wettel on the position of the pole, Ferrari Pitwal kept his eye on the wrong red bull. Vabber’s Stop Left Elonso quickly back back Vitali patrooveRenault and took him to seventh position in the flag, while Vetail won the race and championship.

After the checker flag, Alonso’s disappointed face became a meme, a symbol of his title-less years in Ferrari.

2015: A Podium for Wetail

After a win and disappointing in the 2014 season, Vettel left Red Bull and demanded a new beginning in Ferrari. Skuderia’s 2015 car was better than its disappointing predecessor and Vetail made Team-Mate narrowly better Km riconon To secure the fourth on the grid in Melbourne.

Vetail gave very little chance against Hamilton’s leading Mercedes pair and Nico roseburgBut he managed to pass Masa’s Williams in the Pitstop phase, to grab the third place. He held the situation until the checker flag – a good start for his Ferrari career, looking at the pace benefits of Mercedes.

Indeed, Vettel seemed to reverse the competitive order established in his next race, finished second for Hamilton in Malaysia and then defeated both Mercedes in the race. In Hungary and Singapore, two more wins cement him as a major driver of Ferrari, in which Raikonon cast him as a dutiful number two.

However, Vetail was never done to achieve his ambition to win a championship with Ferrari.

What about Hamilton?

Is it reaching a pattern in this history of the previous champion Ganing for further glory in red? Only that Ferrari debut may vary dramatically, even for the best.

Some like Fangio and Alonso, hit the ground running with victory. Others like Shumakar and Vetail needed more time to find their rhythms. And some, like prost, have to face immediate failures that remove more and more disappointments.

Now, as Hamilton started his Ferrari journey in 2025, the big question is: would their beginning be a sign of things to come?