Lewis Hamilton’s arrival at Ferrari was met with a sense of anticipation among fans as he attempts to win an eighth world title with one of the most successful teams of all-time.

The Briton had his first test of their 2025 challenger, the SF-25, at Fiorano just under 24 hours after the team unveiled the livery for the car at the F1 75 launch event in London.

Thousands of fans turned up to see the car in action just as they did when he had his first test, with Hamilton ending the day slower than Charles Leclerc, although running was not representative of actual conditions.

Hamilton has been working hard behind the scenes to get ready for his first season with Ferrari, but he also put a lot of meticulous work into their first official appearance.

Discussing the new iconic social media photo that Hamilton posted which broke records as one of the most ‘liked’ F1 photos on Instagram, he details to Channel 4 how the whole shoot came about.

Lewis Hamilton explains planning behind godfather Ferrari photo

Hamilton’s first official appearance with Ferrari saw him pose in front of Enzo Ferrari’s old house in Maranello next to a Ferrari F40.

Some have speculated over whether there was some symbolism in the image, as it depicted seven windows with a door to an eighth, representing his quest to win an eighth world title.

The Briton explains how the whole iconic shoot happened, and the amount of time that was put into making sure it was the right ‘initiation’ into one of F1’s most iconic teams.

“It was a long build-up to having that day, I had a long time to think about what that first day would look like, what I would be wearing, what car I wanted to have, where I wanted to take the picture, and that’s exactly what I was able to direct,” said Hamilton.

“I hadn’t done any social media beforehand and then I dropped that, it was kind of an initiation into the legacy of this incredible brand. That was magical.”

Ferrari 2025 car design aligned with Red Bull and McLaren in key area

When the SF-25 took to the track at Fiorano for the first time, it was apparent that Ferrari had chosen to change a key area of design with the car.

The front suspension was usually a pushrod layout, but now they have turned to a pullrod front suspension for the 2025 season.

This not only puts them in line with rivals Red Bull and McLaren, but it will also give Ferrari greater setup options and better ride stability that they couldn’t get in previous years.

Hamilton will be happy that the change was made for this season, considering it was an area the team would consistently struggle with in previous seasons.