Struggles on Observe
Within the first 9 races of 2025, his first on the wheel of a Ferrari, it’s simple that Lewis Hamilton has proven extra shadows than highlights. His adaptation to the SF-25 has not been optimum, and the British champion has primarily solely stood out within the two Sprints, with a win in China and a 3rd place in Miami. The comparability with Charles Leclerc is cruel: presently, he trails 94–71 within the standings, 7–1 in races, and seven–2 in qualifying.
Loads of Recommendation Behind the Scenes
In an interview given in Imola to Sky Italia, Lewis Hamilton defined how he’s tried to switch his expertise (six years at McLaren and twelve at Mercedes) to assist enhance the staff: “At Maranello we’ve got a incredible simulator, however since I arrived, I’ve instructed pages and pages of issues I believed wanted enchancment. And we’re engaged on it, we’re constantly working to get higher, and the fellows have already made some progress. Then the correlation between wind tunnel and monitor is superb — I’ve been in groups the place that wasn’t the case, whereas on this space Ferrari could be very superior.”
Likewise, throughout the Barcelona weekend, Lewis Hamilton emphasised: “Quickly I’ll inform the staff it’s time to deal with subsequent yr. This season is about constructing a basis, attending to know the instruments by way of construction and processes, and refining them in order that when 2026 arrives, we’ll have the automobile we actually need.”
Phrases of a frontrunner, regardless of the outcomes.
All statements that align with what his father, Anthony Hamilton, advised Canal Plus in Australia at first of the season: “We’re going to rebuild this staff, not only for ourselves, however for Ferrari, for Italy, for all of the followers. That is thrilling.”
In brief, Lewis Hamilton is greater than only a driver for Ferrari — he’s a form of tremendous advisor for the staff’s progress. And, not a minor element, he has a direct line to president John Elkann…
And Leclerc Too…
Charles Leclerc has additionally acknowledged the worth of Lewis’s recommendation to the staff: “He involves Ferrari with quite a lot of expertise from totally different groups. He got here from a special tradition, the German one, which in comparison with ours — the Italian one — has many various methods of working. There are similarities in some areas, however I’d say extra variations than similarities. So it’s very attention-grabbing to listen to Lewis converse in regards to the areas the place we have to enhance our working strategies.”
On this observe, a mirrored image on Charles Leclerc is acceptable. For months it was mentioned that Lewis Hamilton’s arrival could be a possibility for the Monegasque driver to develop. And it in all probability already has been, although extra off-track than on. He has noticed how a driver operates — even politically. He’s taken notes after which acted.
The choices Charles Leclerc made in Q3 on the Circuit de Catalunya-Barcelona had been these of a charismatic driver — each in saving a set of medium tyres for the race and within the timing of his single lap, not finished on the finish of the session — able to take duty head-on. As he already had earlier within the season, when in Jeddah, Charles Leclerc selected to go in a special path than his teammate by way of setup, to extract the utmost from the SF-25, and succeeded.
And discovering a Charles Leclerc who’s even stronger — maybe at his absolute peak — and much more charismatic is definitely not unhealthy information for the Ferrari world. What’s “solely” lacking is a championship-worthy automobile.
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