Lewis Hamilton's admission of his neck injury offers some background to his tough start in his first year with Ferrari. In an interview ahead of the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix, Hamilton disclosed that he suffered a painful neck injury during a private Ferrari test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in January 2025.
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion said the incident happened only days after he started his preparations with Ferrari after his high-profile switch from Mercedes.
Hamilton Reveals Extent of Ferrari Testing Neck Injury
The crash caused a disc in his neck to compress a nerve, resulting in chronic pain that lasted about three months, Hamilton said.
He said in his statement that, "I hit the wall very hard last year in testing and knocked out a disc in my neck, which went into the nerve."
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The Ferrari driver said the injury had a huge impact on his life. He admitted that he had trouble sleeping due to the pain and was treated regularly without missing any competitions.
Hamilton said the recovery involved chiropractic treatment and injections to alleviate the pain. He never revealed the injury publicly in the 2025 season, though, and opted to deal with it in private as he adjusted to life at Ferrari.
Hamilton Says He Has Fully Recovered
Hamilton stressed that the injury is now behind him and no longer affects his driving.
Looking back on it, he admitted it was one of the toughest physical challenges of his career, but he was not going to let it get in the way of his first season with Ferrari.
The disclosure also provides insight into some of the challenges Hamilton encountered in the early months of his Ferrari career, as he acclimatized to a new team and an injury that required constant medical attention.
Hamilton is now in the Austrian Grand Prix weekend and is only interested in getting the best out of the Ferrari.