Hamilton: Sepang is one of the best circuits, and I'm happy to be back

SEPANG: "I'm happy to be back."

Lewis Hamilton made little effort to conceal his enthusiasm about returning to the Sepang International Circuit, nine years after Formula One last raced at the Malaysian track in 2017.

But almost everything around him has changed.

Hamilton arrived here in 2017 as the leading figure at Mercedes-AMG Petronas. He returns now in Ferrari red, having moved to the Italian team in 2025 after one of the most consequential driver transfers of his generation.

In an interview with beIN SPORTS ahead of this weekend's race, Hamilton described Sepang as one of Formula One's finest circuits and said he was pleased to have it back.

"I am happy it's back," he said. "It's one of the best circuits. It's a really fantastic circuit."

For Hamilton, much of Sepang's appeal lies in its difficulty.

The circuit combines long straights, fast corners and punishing tropical conditions, placing unusual demands on the driver, the car and, particularly, the tyres.

Hamilton said the tyres are under severe thermal stress almost as soon as a car leaves the pit lane, while the heat inside the cockpit makes Sepang one of the more physically demanding circuits he has raced.

That challenge, in his view, is precisely the point.

Formula One, Hamilton said, needs more tracks that encourage actual racing.

"This is a racing circuit," he said.

Five poles, but only one victory

Hamilton's history at Sepang is impressive, though slightly deceptive.

His qualifying record is exceptional.

Hamilton has taken five pole positions at Sepang during his career. The first came with McLaren in 2012. He then secured four consecutive poles from 2014 through 2017 with Mercedes.

His record on Sundays has been more modest.

Hamilton has won at Sepang only once, at the 2014 Malaysian Grand Prix.

Starting from pole, he controlled the race and finished ahead of his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg, scoring what was his first victory at the circuit.

It remains Hamilton's only Formula One win at Sepang.

When Formula One last raced here in 2017, Hamilton again started from pole. But Max Verstappen passed him and went on to win, leaving Hamilton second.

The contrast is notable: few drivers have been as consistently quick over a single qualifying lap at Sepang, yet that dominance has produced only one race victory.

The 2017 race was his last appearance at Sepang as a Mercedes driver, but it was not his final season with Mercedes.

Hamilton remained with the team through the end of 2024, having joined it in 2013. He won six of his seven world championships during that partnership.

He then joined Ferrari for the 2025 season.

So when Hamilton returns to the Sepang grid this weekend, he does so for the first time not as the driver most closely associated with Mercedes' dominant era, but as one of Ferrari's central figures.

Antonelli leads; Hamilton is third

The championship picture adds another layer to that return.

Heading into the Sepang weekend, Andrea Kimi Antonelli leads the 2026 Drivers' Championship with 302 points.

His Mercedes teammate, George Russell, is second with 236, while Hamilton sits third on 199 points for Ferrari.

Hamilton is therefore 103 points behind Antonelli.

The symbolism is difficult to miss.

Antonelli leads the championship for the team Hamilton represented for 12 seasons, while Hamilton is now attempting to build Ferrari into a title contender during his second season in Maranello.

Formula One is racing at Sepang again this weekend after a nine-year absence, with the Malaysian circuit serving as the venue for the relocated 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix.

For Hamilton, however, the return is also personal.

Sepang has given him five pole positions, four of them consecutively, but only one victory.

Nine years after his last race here, he has another opportunity.

Only now, the silver Mercedes has been replaced by a red Ferrari.