Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton may be busy competing for a record eighth driver’s championship—but that doesn’t mean he is neglecting his hobbies away from the track, revealing at the first grand prix of the season that he spent his downtime over the winter working on setting up his own farm.
During a press conference held during the Australian Grand Prix weekend, the 41-year-old Ferrari driver left motor sport fans stunned when he announced that he is “beginning a farm,” hinting that the project is being set up at his sprawling Colorado ranch.
Taking to the stage alongside his teammate, Charles Leclerc, Hamilton was answering questions from reporters when an image of himself posing with a cow was flashed up on the screen behind him—prompting him to reveal the origins behind the snap and the animal’s somewhat ironic name.
“This is my cow!” he exclaimed proudly, before revealing that the cow is named Max, the same moniker as his on-track rival, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
Hamilton was quick to point out that he was not responsible for the cow’s name, noting that the animal had already been given the moniker when he “inherited” him.
“His name’s Max! I’m not lying,” he said. “I didn’t name him, I inherited him by the way. But his name is Max. I swear on my life. I’m beginning a farm and I inherited him, I adopted him basically. His name is Max and I have another one called Hombre.”
Hamilton went on to reveal that the cows have helped to fill at least part of the void left when his beloved bulldog, Roscoe, died in September.
“They’re the softest, they’re like the new Roscoe for me,” he shared.
While Hamilton did not reveal the location of his farm, the images shared by the racing legend indicate that it is being established on his sprawling ranch in Colorado, which he has owned for more than 10 years.
The photo that was flashed up on the screen was taken from a January Instagram post in which Hamilton was seen spending time with Max and Hombre, as well as his mother, Carmen, before hitting the Colorado slopes for a snowboarding trip with some friends.
In the caption, Hamilton noted how “grateful” he had been for the opportunity to visit the property and spend some time recharging before the start of the new F1 season.
“Another return. I’m incredibly grateful for this break. Time to disconnect, recharge and find a bit of inner peace,” he wrote. “Time with family and friends replenishing with rest and good laughs has been everything I needed after a very draining year.
“In a world that moves so fast where we’re constantly being pulled in so many directions, truly disconnecting has been the most amazing feeling.”
Despite boasting a jaw-dropping international portfolio that reportedly includes dwellings in New York, Monaco, and Switzerland, Hamilton has previously admitted that the property—which is understood to be located in Avon, CO—is the only place where he truly feels at home.
In November 2020, the driver revealed to the BBC that he spent much of the pandemic hunkered down at the sprawling mountain property, where he was able to retreat for long periods of time, something he said he had never really had the chance to do before.
“I’ve never really been home [before],” he said. “In my winter, I go to the mountains [in Colorado], which I really see as my main home, because it’s a house and it’s full of love and memories from people, the family that come every winter.”
Though the driver noted that his true home is technically his place in Monaco—where many Formula 1 drivers base themselves to take advantage of the principality’s lack of personal income, wealth, or capital gains taxes—he said the property there does not hold the same emotional significance for him as his Colorado dwelling.
“Where I live in Monaco, it’s been somewhere I go back to and I’d call home but it lacks those memories. I’d be there for short periods of time. So it’s not been the easiest,” he explained.
In January of that same year, months before the COVID pandemic gripped the world, Hamilton opened up about his love of his Colorado property in an emotional Instagram post, sharing a candid photo of himself hugging a large wooden pillar in the home.
“I never could have even dreamed to own a home like the one I do now. I thank God everyday for giving me a family that worked so hard to give me the chance to make something of myself,” he wrote.
“And to own a home that I love so much, get to create so many wonderful memories brings me more happiness than I ever thought I could deserve. I am at peace when I’m here, can focus and build my mind and body so that I can come back year on year.”
As a Formula 1 driver, Hamilton—who is currently in Shanghai for the Chinese Grand Prix—spends much of his time jetting around the globe for races, which take place in an array of locations from Bahrain to Singapore to the U.K.
The 2026 F1 season, which began with preseason testing in February, will feature 24 races, many of which are scheduled on back-to-back weekends—although the drivers will get a break during August, when Hamilton may well have the opportunity to pay another visit to his Colorado abode.