Lewis Hamilton causes stir as he unfollows Ferrari on Instagram ahead of first home race

Lewis Hamilton has unfollowed everyone including his new team Ferrari and even his pet dog Roscoe just days before the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The move has surprised many fans as the seven-time world champion is set to race at the Imola circuit for the first time in Ferrari colours.

This isn’t the first time Hamilton has done something like this. After his controversial 2021 Formula 1 title loss to Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi, he disappeared from Instagram for months before returning with a fresh post. However, this time the reason behind his digital move isn't fully clear.

Tough start to Ferrari move

Hamilton has had a difficult start to his first season with Ferrari. Apart from a sprint race win in Shanghai, he has struggled with the car and hasn't finished higher than fifth in a main race, which he achieved in Bahrain. In the Miami Grand Prix, he took the eighth position after a tough battle with teammate Charles Leclerc.

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Hamilton is currently sitting in seventh place in the championship standings and is 12 points behind Leclerc, who is in fifth spot. Interestingly, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who replaced Hamilton in Mercedes, is one place ahead of the British driver in the 2025 F1 drivers' standings.

Hamilton's struggles with social media

During the 2023 Brazilian Grand Prix, Hamilton had opened up about his struggles with social media. He revealed that he was dealing with anxiety related to these platforms and had been undergoing therapy. He also admitted that he doesn’t enjoy being active on social media much.

"You know, you don't see me on social media a huge amount because there are anxieties that I have. I have never spoken about it, but I've had to do a lot of work in the back. Whether it's working through therapy, whether it's taking on, like, finding different outlets, whether it's reading more, whether it's doing meditation, whether it's trying to pull in more tools to my arsenal so that I can deal with the challenges that I'm facing."

Hamilton’s last Grand Prix win was in Belgium last year after Mercedes teammate George Russell was disqualified. Before that, he had ended a long winless streak at his home race in Silverstone.