Jenson Button believes "we will see Lewis Hamilton back to his best" in the 2026 Formula One season following the new regulations.

Button and Hamilton were team-mates at McLaren for three years after the former became world champion with Brawn GP in 2009, a year after Hamilton won his maiden title in the sport.

Hamilton struggled in his debut season with Ferrari last year, failing to finish on the podium in a campaign for the first time in his career and finishing sixth in the drivers' championship.

He was almost 100 points behind Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc as the seven-time world champion could not compete at the front of the grid.

However, with new regulations in place for the 2026 season, Button feels Hamilton will be able to thrive under the new conditions.

"It was tough watching Lewis in 2025," Button told Sky Sports News.

Not long now  pic.twitter.com/ItxnNvJwjt

— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) February 26, 2026

"We were team-mates for three years, and I understand how good he is, so it was really tough to see him struggle, and you could see it in his face how much it was hurting.

"You kind of forget everything else he’s achieved in that moment of time because you just see the pain, but with the new regulation changes, we will see Lewis Hamilton back to his best.

"He’ll have an input into how the car is designed, and I have confidence he’ll take it in a direction that works for him.

"I hope to see that because we all want to see Ferrari at the front, and we all want to see Lewis fighting at the front again."

The new season gets underway next week at the Australian Grand Prix, with Mercedes and Ferrari proving to be two of the stronger cars in pre-season testing.