F1 | Ex Ferrari driver reveals the true issue behind Lewis Hamilton’s struggles in 2025. A former Ferrari driver believes Lewis Hamilton’s real challenge at Maranello is not technical but psychological.

F1 | A former Ferrari driver has no doubts: the real problem of Lewis Hamilton revealed

According to a former Ferrari Formula 1 driver, the biggest obstacle Lewis Hamilton has faced so far at Maranello is not technical, but entirely psychological. With attention already shifting towards the 2026 season, expectations are extremely high. If Hamilton is unable to prove his competitiveness under the new regulations, the British champion could quickly become a major concern for Ferrari. The investment made by the Scuderia was significant, and Team Principal Frédéric Vasseur is expecting results from the seven-time world champion.

The first part of the 2025 season has certainly not gone as either Hamilton or Ferrari had hoped. The SF-25 has shown several weaknesses, limiting performance in the early races. However, the engineers at Maranello have demonstrated their ability to improve, as shown by the upgrades that allowed Charles Leclerc to take pole position and a podium finish at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Hamilton, on the other hand, has not yet managed to replicate such results in a Grand Prix. Aside from his victory in the Shanghai Sprint, the former Mercedes driver has still not achieved a top-three finish in a full race. For a driver with a career as decorated as his, this statistic is a clear signal that something is not working as expected and that there are deeper issues to resolve looking ahead to next year.

A former Ferrari driver has no doubts

Former Ferrari driver Gerhard Berger recently shared his thoughts on the situation in an interview. He explained: “It’s all a bit messy. Lewis has always been used to being the undisputed number one in a team. Now Charles Leclerc has him under control. But this is more a moral issue than a technical one. Status should not matter once you’re on track. Lewis is struggling at the moment, but he needs to find the solution himself. He must take back control of the car and reassert himself against his teammate. It’s entirely up to him,” Gerhard Berger told Austrian outlet Krone.

This perspective reinforces the idea that Lewis Hamilton’s challenge in Ferrari red goes beyond the machinery. His task is not only to adapt to the SF-25 but also to redefine his place in the team alongside Charles Leclerc, in a dynamic very different from the one he experienced at Mercedes. With the 2026 regulation changes approaching, Ferrari and its fans will be watching closely to see whether the seven-time world champion can rise to the challenge and deliver the results expected of him.