Lewis Hamilton says he intends to disappear from the grid — quite literally — once Formula 1 heads into the winter shutdown, vowing to ditch his phone and “completely unplug” after a bruising first season at Ferrari.

The seven-time world champion made the blockbuster switch from Mercedes to Maranello this year, uniting the sport’s most decorated driver with its most storied team. Hopes soared that Ferrari’s strong finish to last season might give Hamilton the platform to chase a historic eighth title.

Instead, his debut campaign in red has turned into one to forget. The Brit endured the first year of his career without a single Grand Prix podium, and ended the season on a miserable run of three straight Q1 eliminations. His frustration has been increasingly visible.

After qualifying 16th for the Abu Dhabi finale, Hamilton admitted he felt an “unbearable amount of anger and rage.” He recovered to eighth place on race day, but the result did little to improve his mood.

“Right now I’m only looking forward to the break — disconnecting, not speaking to anyone,” the 40-year-old said afterward.
“No one will be able to reach me this winter. I won’t have my phone with me and I’m looking forward to that. Completely unplug from the matrix.
“I’ve always had it on me, but this time it’s going in the freaking bin.”

While Hamilton has struggled, teammate Charles Leclerc has also voiced his irritation despite finishing fifth in the standings and claiming seven podiums. A winless campaign has left the Monegasque urging Ferrari to capitalise on next season’s major rule changes, calling it a “now or never” chance to return to title contention.

Ferrari — once unstoppable under Michael Schumacher in the early 2000s — have not produced a drivers’ champion since Kimi Räikkönen in 2007. They finished fourth in this year’s constructors’ table.

Team principal Frédéric Vasseur, however, downplayed the post-race emotion from his drivers.
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re first or 10th,” he insisted. “The debrief today at Alpine, Williams, Red Bull or with us is the same — everyone is just trying to do a better job.”