Former F1 driver makes Lewis Hamilton title claim but has precautionary caveat

Johnny Herbert has told talkSPORT that he believes Lewis Hamilton can compete for the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship this season.

It’s been a tough couple of campaigns for the Brit despite swapping Mercedes for Ferrari last year – but there are signs that he could be a contender again in 2026.

Getty

Hamilton had an incredible start to F1 testing in Barcelona, setting the quickest lap time across the whole week, showing potential for the seven-time champion.

The Brit sat on top of the time charts with a test-best time of 1:16.348.

On the final day, Lando Norris went second quickest with a 1.16.595 on long runs, with Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc in third.

Making predictions based on pre-season testing is notoriously unreliable due to teams running different tyres and fuel loads, in addition to car and engine settings meaning accurate comparisons are difficult to make.

However, Ferrari and Hamilton will certainly be excited by the results after F1 had its latest regulation changes ahead of the new season, starting in March.

And three-time Formula One race winner Johnny Herbert told talkSPORT that, despite obvious testing caveats, Ferrari and Hamilton could well be challenging for the title.

Herbert, who was in Formula One from 1989-2000, told talkSPORT at the Formula E Miami E-Prix: “I’d say yes (to a potential eighth World Drivers Championship in 2026).

“We’re going to have to wait and see, that sort of testing behind closed doors is something where we’re not really going to know the full story, so we will have to see how that plays out.”

The team from Maranello completed an impressive 440 laps across the week at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

Hamilton described the week as enjoyable and how happy he and Ferrari are, but knows they still have work to do.

AFP

He said: “Mercedes have done great running. Red Bull and Haas did some great running as well. We don’t know where we are but I think it’s a solid first week and we can really build from here.

“There may be some big leaps that are going to need to be taken, development is going to be key.

“Just really making sure we leave no stone unturned and we are just really clear and concise with our communications and the decisions we take.

“It’s going to take all of us to be at our best and I’m seeing that everyone is coming with new energy this year, which is great.”

Hamilton managed to enjoy his winter break as he spent some time with notable figures across the world.

He visited New York City, spending time with Hollywood actor Michael B. Jordan, as he tipped the Big Apple as his ‘favourite city’.

Getty

Additionally, the British racing driver has sparked dating rumours in the last week with Kim Kardashian after being spotted visiting a hotel in the Cotswolds, which costs £19,000 a night.

In addition, the pair were also spotted last night at the Super Bowl together where the Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29-13.

Hamilton has certainly had some needed downtime ahead of the new Formula 1 season, starting March 6 in Melbourne, Australia.

This week the former World Champion will be heading to Bahrain ahead of the second pre-season testing, hoping for a similar outcome that he had in Barcelona.