Lewis Hamilton shared a photo of himself standing outside of Maranello and posing with the iconic Ferrari F40 as the Brit celebrated his first day with his new team.

Hamilton's Ferrari contract officially started on 1 January, but the seven-time world champion only linked up with his new employers on Monday. The former Mercedes man kicked off the year with a skiing getaway, letting off steam ahead of his 40th birthday.

Now, F1's most decorated driver has arrived at Maranello. Hamilton posed in a dashing suit alongside one of Ferrari's most beloved classic cars for an X post, captioned: "New era."

Hamilton expanded further on his Instagram page, posting the same photo with an inspirational message to boot. "There are some days that you know you’ll remember forever and today, my first as a Ferrari driver, is one of those days," he wrote.

"I’ve been lucky enough to have achieved things in my career I never thought possible, but part of me has always held on to that dream of racing in red. I couldn’t be happier to realise that dream today. Today we start a new era in the history of this iconic team, and I can’t wait to see what story we will write together."

Hamilton faces an intense battle when the season does get underway. In Charles Leclerc, the 40-year-old's latest team-mate will rival Fernando Alonso as his most formidable, thanks to his reputation as one of the sport's best drivers over one lap.

Fortunately, Hamilton will enjoy plenty of testing time before turning a wheel in Melbourne. The Scuderia reportedly plan to use their entire 1,000-kilometre TPC (testing of previous cars) allocation on the seven-time world champion, getting him up to speed at their private Fiorano test track.

The iconic Brit has already impressed new CEO, Benedetto Vigna, too. "There is excitement, there is a great desire to start, to face the tests," he told Corriere della Sera. "Change is always important, and Hamilton has put himself back into the game.

"I loved reading his post on LinkedIn at the start of the year, a powerful message not to give up hope in all areas. With him and Charles, we will have fun. To me, that post on Linkedin reminded me of when Indro Montanelli decided to change at the age of 80 (and found La Voce newspaper). I found it beautiful."