Lewis Hamilton caught inspecting Mercedes W17 at Monaco Grand Prix

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton was spotted examining Kimi Antonelli’s race-winning Mercedes W17 in the immediate aftermath of the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend.

Antonelli secured a fifth consecutive victory in Monte Carlo last Sunday to extend his lead in the F1 2026 drivers’ standings to 66 points.

Lewis Hamilton examines Antonelli’s Mercedes W17 at Monaco GP

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The Italian’s latest triumph made him the first driver in Formula 1 history to claim his first five grand prix victories in successive races.

Hamilton came home second in Monaco to claim consecutive podiums for the first time in almost two years, with the seven-time world champion rising to second place in the standings.

Isack Hadjar completed the podium, recording his second career podium and his first since joining Red Bull at the start of this season.

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Footage and images captured ahead of Sunday’s podium ceremony revealed that Hamilton took a close look at Antonelli’s Mercedes on the grid.

The photographs show Hamilton examining the W17 in the background of Hadjar’s post-race television interview, with the 41-year-old crouching down at one stage to study the rear end and the floor of the Mercedes (below).

The W17 previously caught Hamilton’s attention at this year’s Chinese Grand Prix, where the Ferrari driver was also seen crouching behind the car in parc ferme.

Appearing in the post-race press conference in Monaco, Hamilton conceded that Ferrari has a lot of work to do to reach Mercedes’ level in F1 2026.

Explaining his inspection of the Mercedes, he told PlanetF1.com and other media outlets: “The performance they have is next level.

“It was a good experience because it gives me a much better idea of where I need to have the team learn and improve, not only from what I’m feeling but what I’m seeing as well.

“There’s lots of things that we need to be adding to this car.”

Hamilton’s latest inspection of the Mercedes comes after Adrian Newey, the Aston Martin team principal, was also spotted eyeing the designs of rival teams in Monaco.

As reported on Monday, PlanetF1.com’s on-the-ground reporter Thomas Maher caught Newey paying close attention to the McLaren MCL40s of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri on the grid.

Newey was also spotted examining the Alpine A526 of Pierre Gasly.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

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