Lewis Hamilton returns from F1 summer break at his 'fittest' as he aims to challenge Kimi Antonelli

ZANDVOORT, Netherlands (AP) — Lewis Hamilton says more training and less partying is paying off as he heads into the second half of the Formula 1 season in what he says is the fittest he's ever been mid-campaign.

The 41-year-old Ferrari driver said Thursday he's “refreshed” from his push for physical fitness as he heads into the Dutch Grand Prix trying to chase down standings leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes and pursue an eighth F1 title.

Hamilton said “normally” drivers would spend a week or two of the break partying but he has doubled down on fitness this year, ahead of the first race since July 26.

“This has been the most different summer break that I’ve ever had in all of my championship seasons in my career in Formula 1,” Hamilton said. “I come back the fittest I’ve ever come back in a summer, in 20 years or whatever that I’ve been here, so I’m pretty proud of that.”

Hamilton is second in the standings, 50 points behind Antonelli, in a season which has already seen him claim his first win since 2024 and re-emerge as a genuine title contender after a flat 2025 when he went into the mid-season break doubting his abilities .

“I’ve come in really feeling definitely refreshed. It’s a different sort of feeling, rather than relaxed,” he said Thursday. “It’s a good feeling, feeling fit.”

Hamilton also had warm words for Ferrari, which he said was “going in the right direction” after embracing a more innovative approach to car design to take the fight to Mercedes, which began the year as the runaway leader under F1's new regulations.

With rain and gusts of wind expected Friday and potentially during Saturday's sprint race, the Dutch Grand Prix could pose a new challenge to drivers who have yet to deal with the new generation of F1 cars in the wet.

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