Lewis Hamilton Reveals Fernando Alonso May Have Prevented an Earlier Ferrari Move

Lewis Hamilton has revealed that his long-awaited move to Ferrari could potentially have happened many years earlier, but he believes Fernando Alonso may have prevented the opportunity during Stefano Domenicali’s time as team principal.

Hamilton finally joined Ferrari in 2025, fulfilling what he has repeatedly described as one of his biggest ambitions in Formula 1. Before making the switch to Maranello, the British driver spent the first 18 seasons of his Formula 1 career racing for McLaren and Mercedes.

Although Hamilton eventually achieved his dream of wearing Ferrari’s famous red colors, he has now suggested that the move might have happened much earlier in his career.

Speaking during the Italian Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton explained that joining Ferrari had been something he had considered for years. He admitted that the possibility of never racing for the Scuderia could have become one of the biggest unanswered questions of his career.

For a driver who had already achieved almost everything possible in Formula 1, Hamilton apparently did not want to reach retirement wondering what might have happened if he had accepted an opportunity to drive for Ferrari.

The situation, however, was complicated by his previous relationship with Alonso.

Hamilton and Alonso’s Complicated McLaren History

Stefano Domenicali was Ferrari’s team principal from 2008 until 2014. This period began shortly after Hamilton won his first Formula 1 world championship and covered some of the most important years of his career.

According to Hamilton, he had spoken with Domenicali on several occasions about the possibility of joining Ferrari.

However, he suspects that Alonso may have had the ability to prevent the deal from happening.

Hamilton and Alonso had been team-mates at McLaren in 2007, and their relationship became increasingly tense during a highly controversial season.

Both drivers were competing for the championship, and neither was willing to accept a clear secondary role within the team. Their rivalry created significant tension inside McLaren and became one of the defining stories of the season.

After their difficult year together, Alonso moved away from McLaren and eventually joined Ferrari. Hamilton, meanwhile, remained with McLaren before making his own move to Mercedes.

Hamilton now believes that Alonso’s position within Ferrari may have contributed to his inability to join the Italian team at that time.

The British driver suggested that Alonso possessed what he described as “veto rights,” meaning that the Spaniard may have been able to influence or block the recruitment of another driver.

Alonso spent his first four seasons at Ferrari alongside Felipe Massa. During that period, Massa increasingly appeared to operate as the team’s secondary driver as Ferrari focused its championship efforts around Alonso.

That environment would likely have made it difficult for Ferrari to consider bringing Hamilton into the team at the same time.

A Dream Hamilton Could Not Ignore

Despite not joining Ferrari during that period, Hamilton says he always felt a particular attraction to the team.

He recalled walking past Ferrari’s garage and experiencing a different atmosphere compared with the other teams on the grid.

Ferrari’s status in Formula 1 is unlike that of almost any other team. The red cars have a history stretching back decades, and the passionate support of the Italian fans gives the team a unique identity.

Hamilton remembered Ferrari supporters calling out to him as he passed, encouraging him to join the Scuderia.

He described hearing people around the Ferrari garage effectively telling him to “come to Ferrari.”

Those moments apparently stayed with him.

Although Hamilton enjoyed enormous success with McLaren and Mercedes, the idea of driving for Ferrari remained in the background throughout his career.

He eventually reached a point where he decided that he needed to experience it for himself.

The decision became official when Hamilton announced that he would leave Mercedes and join Ferrari for the 2025 season.

After 18 seasons competing for McLaren and Mercedes, the move represented one of the biggest driver changes in modern Formula 1.

Why the Timing Mattered

Hamilton’s decision to join Ferrari was not simply about changing teams.

At this stage of his career, he had already won seven world championships and established himself as one of the most successful drivers in Formula 1 history.

The move was therefore driven partly by the desire to accomplish something he had never done before.

Hamilton had won races with McLaren and Mercedes, claimed championships and broken numerous records. But he had never experienced a Grand Prix victory in Ferrari colors.

For him, retiring without ever having driven for the Scuderia could have left a lingering sense of unfinished business.

That explains why he described the possibility as a major “what if.”

There are few opportunities in Formula 1 that carry the same emotional significance as joining Ferrari. Even drivers who have enjoyed successful careers elsewhere often regard racing for the Italian team as a unique achievement.

Hamilton ultimately decided that he did not want to leave that box unchecked.

The Alonso Factor

Hamilton’s revelation about Alonso adds an interesting dimension to their already complicated Formula 1 history.

Their rivalry at McLaren in 2007 was one of the most intense team-mate battles of the era. Hamilton was a rookie at the time, yet immediately challenged the highly experienced Alonso.

The young British driver quickly demonstrated that he was capable of competing at the highest level, while Alonso was already a double world champion.

Their relationship deteriorated as the season progressed, with both drivers involved in a tense championship battle.

Hamilton’s suggestion that Alonso later had the power to block his Ferrari move gives their history another intriguing twist.

Alonso’s first years at Ferrari coincided with a period when the team was heavily focused on his championship ambitions. Massa played an important supporting role, but Alonso was clearly regarded as Ferrari’s primary title contender.

Bringing Hamilton into that environment could potentially have created another highly competitive internal rivalry.

From Ferrari’s perspective, such a pairing might have been difficult to manage.

Hamilton Finally Gets His Ferrari Opportunity

More than a decade later, circumstances had changed dramatically.

Alonso was no longer in control of Ferrari’s driver line-up, and Hamilton’s career had reached a completely different stage.

Ferrari eventually became the destination Hamilton had wanted for so long.

His arrival created enormous excitement among fans around the world, particularly in Italy. Ferrari supporters had spent years wondering what Hamilton might have achieved behind the wheel of one of their cars.

Hamilton’s first season with the team therefore carried enormous expectations.

The move also represented the final chapter of an extraordinary journey that began when Hamilton entered Formula 1 with McLaren in 2007.

Over the years, he established himself as one of the sport’s greatest drivers before spending more than a decade with Mercedes and winning six world championships with the German manufacturer.

Yet the Ferrari dream remained.

A Career Move That Came at the Right Time

Hamilton’s comments suggest that he has no regrets about waiting until 2025 to make the switch.

Although he believes there were opportunities to join Ferrari during Domenicali’s tenure, the circumstances may not have been right.

His relationship with Alonso, Ferrari’s internal priorities and the competitive situations of the various teams all played a role.

Eventually, Hamilton was able to make the move on his own terms.

The significance of the decision goes beyond contracts and race results. For Hamilton, Ferrari represented a personal ambition that had existed throughout much of his career.

He had walked past the red cars for years, hearing fans encourage him to join them.

Eventually, he answered that call.

Whatever happens during his time with Ferrari, Hamilton can now say that he did not retire wondering what it would have been like to race for the most famous team in Formula 1.

His revelation about Alonso adds an intriguing “what if” to the story.

Had the circumstances been different during the Domenicali era, Formula 1 history could have looked very different, with Hamilton potentially racing in Ferrari red many years before he eventually did.

Instead, the move had to wait until 2025.

After an 18-year journey through McLaren and Mercedes, Hamilton finally arrived at Maranello and turned one of his longest-standing ambitions into reality.