The engine of Lewis's Ferrari F40 had the serial number 44.

      In this season, Lewis Hamilton is driving more consistently than Charles Leclerc, his teammate at Ferrari, and the seven-time world champion is already firmly associated with the Italian team in the minds of fans, especially after his first victory in a Grand Prix behind the wheel of a red car.

      Moreover, Lewis constantly emphasizes how valuable Ferrari's historical legacy is to him, and recently he acquired a sports car of the legendary F40 model – the last one that was personally approved for production by Enzo Ferrari shortly before his death. It was in this car that Hamilton appeared today in the paddock of the Monza racetrack, which made a special impression on everyone...

      Lewis Hamilton: "I take Ferrari's legacy very seriously, which is not only related to motorsport. When I, being associated with this brand, see how people around the world perceive it, how they relate to this logo and these legendary cars, it leaves a strong impression on me.

      You know, when I showed one of the executives at Ferrari how I drove the F40 in Japan, he said, 'Maybe next year you can drive the Luce electric car.' And I replied that it's not the same compared to the F40.

      In my opinion, the famous lines and contours of this car evoke nostalgic feelings – cars were like that back then, and now there is nothing even remotely similar to them. Of course, there is the Ferrari F80, and it's great too, or the F50, but I remember dreaming of the F40 since childhood. Back then, I could never have imagined that I would one day have the opportunity to acquire one.

      When I appeared at the Ferrari base last year, and those first photos were taken, it was my idea for them to be exactly like that. The same goes for this weekend. I wanted my appearance to be stylish, to wear this suit, for everything to be just so. I pay tribute to our sport, but I also want this moment to be remembered, as it will never happen again.

      I searched for such a car for a long time and wanted it to have low mileage. I wanted it to be an F40 with its own history, perhaps with the original factory paint still intact – something like that. And I managed to find a car whose owner drove it from Maranello to his home for just 69 kilometers, after which he put it in the garage and never started it again (35 years have passed since then).

      Its passenger door has never been opened, you understand? And the whole car was just covered in dust, so I had to decide what to do? Leave it as it is as a work of art or wash and clean it? I thought about it for a while, and then I ordered Ferrari to fully restore it because I want to drive it.

      Maybe I'm wrong, but I think no Ferrari driver has ever arrived at a racetrack in these legendary cars, in a Ferrari GTO or F40. And I decided that I had to do it!

      And when Ferrari specialists disassembled the car to check everything, it turned out that it had withstood the test of time, everything was still in working condition, and almost nothing needed to be changed. And an incredible coincidence happened: when they extracted the engine, it turned out that its serial number is 44. It is stamped on the engine – I just couldn't believe my eyes!

      I told them: 'You must be joking.' In general, it feels like fate. And I thought it was a great opportunity to draw attention to Ferrari's history, and it will happen right in Italy, at Scuderia's home race – when else might such an opportunity arise?..”