Battle between Lewis Hamilton vs Charles Leclerc set to shape Ferrari's 2026 Formula 1 season

After a miserable first season in Red, in which Hamilton was struck by self doubt while being throughly owned by his teammate, the seven-time Formula 1 World Champion appears to have found his mojo and seems much more at ease in his sophomore year as a Ferrari driver.

Speaking to Vision4Sport, Johnny Herbert said of his fellow Briton's renaissance: “It’s been nice seeing Lewis getting back to being very competitive. It's not so much about just being competitive against the Mercedes; it's being competitive against his teammate, Charles Leclerc.

“We know how fast he is, and the pole positions that he’s had in the race wins, and he's going to be very motivated to try and achieve that once more, and he does have a threat now,” Herbert said.

Hamilton’s early-season form, including strong race pace and wheel-to-wheel fights in China, has signalled a return to competitiveness within Ferrari itself, closing the gap to Leclerc and setting up a tightly balanced contest. The score is 49 to 41, with Leclerc ahead after three rounds.

Herbert noted: “Lewis seems to be very much back to a level where he's challenging Charles, and he's challenging himself, too. We saw that in China, where there were some really good wheel-to-wheel battles with Charles.

"I think Monaco this year will show the very, very best of both of those drivers. It's going to be mighty, mighty close. Is this a chance for Lewis and Charles, and Ferrari, to maybe achieve an unexpected win against the dominance of Mercedes? There's a very good chance of that, I think," reckoned Herbert.

As Formula 1 heads to the Miami Grand Prix next, the spotlight will fall on whether Ferrari’s driver pairing can capitalise on any opportunity that emerges against a dominant Mercedes package. While Hamilton will do all he can to beat Leclerc, and vice versa. Interesting times lie ahead.