Hamilton far from the top
At this start of the season, one of the riders on whom strong attention is being focused regarding his form and his future is undoubtedly Lewis Hamilton. Already with a contract signed with Ferrari for 2025, the seven-time world champion has almost always achieved inferior results compared to your teammate George Russell, both in qualifying and in the race. The Briton, in difficulty with the W15, has not achieved a success since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP, and his recent performances have generated the suspicion of a Hamilton already with his mind set on Maranello rather than focused on the present.
Not 100%
His performances, however, should not be considered as a result of his distraction, but as real difficulties in being able to express his full potential. A former pilot is convinced of this Thierry Boutsenwinners of 3 GPs in a ten-year career from 1983 to 1993: “I don't think he's leaving Mercedes – explained the Belgian to planetf1.com – but I see that, with all his experience and age, it's a little harder to give 100%. Maybe he's only driving at 98%. We saw it during the Suzuka race when he asked if he should let Russell overtake him. A few years ago, she would have fought like crazy to stay in front of him. Now, when things go as badly as they did in this case, she finds herself in a bad situation and gives up, giving Russell a chance to be better than him and help the team improve, because feels he is not in a position – or capable – of doing as wellfor any reason”.
New spirit in Ferrari, but…
However, what Hamilton needs right now to be able to return to 100% is a change of scenery, like the one that awaits him at Ferrari. An aspect that convinces the former Williams driver, but always with some limitations: “It will be a lot interesting to see how he will revitalize himself and return to having a winning spirit in Ferrari – he added – but I think that a single driver cannot lead a team to the top. This is no longer the case: it was possible in the 70s and 80s. Maybe a little in the 90s, but it hasn't been possible since then. Otherwise he would have beaten Verstappen last year, the year before and would have won the championship this year. The drivers are no longer involved in the development of the car, it is more the computers and engineers who build it. I don't see how he could be the driver capable of leading Ferrari to win the duel with Red Bull – he concluded – if Ferrari returns to that level, it will be because they build a car capable of winning and, joining Ferrari at the end of this year, how much time will he have to build the team around him to build the car?”
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