Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur remains “convinced” that Lewis Hamilton will get back to his best at Ferrari sooner rather than later, admitting the squad might have “underestimated” the changes the Briton has experienced so far this year.
After two lengthy stints at McLaren and Mercedes, Hamilton made a blockbuster move to the Scuderia for the 2025 season – aiming to help end their championship-winning drought and get back to the top step of the podium himself.
It has been a mixed campaign for the seven-time World Champion so far, with highs including his Sprint pole position and victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, and lows including early Qualifying exits and point-less races.
Vasseur, though, is not concerned, underlining the various factors Hamilton has been getting used to in an appearance on F1’s Beyond The Grid podcast.
“I don’t know if we underestimated the importance of the change,” said Vasseur. “Probably, because he spent 10 years at McLaren, then 12 with Mercedes, but it was a kind of continuity – two teams based in the UK with the same engine, same environment.
“[Joining Ferrari] is a complete change for him, in his life, the culture of the team and everything. To do it in three test days in the winter period is quite difficult – and I think also the expectation was huge.
“We have to put everything in place, and it’s taking time. We have to also manage expectations and manage the noise around the team.”
Making reference to F1’s incredibly tight field in 2025, Vasseur continued: “The comments [about performances] are positive or negative for plus or minus one-tenth of a second, or plus or minus a click of front wing that you did or not – it’s always marginal.
“If we are not able to put everything together from the preparation of the weekend, the adaptation to the simulator, blah, blah, blah, until Sunday, you can miss one-tenth there or one-tenth there. This is making a huge difference in terms of pure results.”
Moving forward, Vasseur stressed the importance of support – in both directions – as driver and team look to end the current season in a competitive way and approach F1’s upcoming rules reset in a good place.
“It’s up to us to support him when he is struggling, and we also need to push him when he’s struggling,” said Vasseur. “Spa and Budapest were difficult for him, but he can be sure that he has the full support of everyone in Maranello to recover, to be back.
“I’m really convinced that he will do it. We have to be supportive with him every single day, and I will be supportive every single day with Lewis.
“It’s a matter of support and mentality. He’s fully committed, he’s pushing like hell. He’s trying to get the best from everybody, and he will always have my support for this.
“He’s a champion, he’s doing very well, and he has the pace. The other characteristic is to try to get the best from the people around you, extra motivation, and extra push. For sure, this characteristic is there.”
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