From Lewis Hamilton’s first year with Ferrari to the results achieved by Charles Leclerc, Valtteri Bottas has highlighted several aspects of the season for the Maranello driver line-up. Hamilton’s first campaign in red appears to be more complicated than anticipated, at least when it comes to results. With three races remaining, the seven-time world champion is still chasing his first podium with the Prancing Horse. On the other side of the garage, Charles Leclerc has already secured seven podium finishes.
Ferrari, however, remains in the fight for second place in the constructors’ championship, even though the team slipped to fourth after the Brazilian Grand Prix, behind world champions McLaren, as well as Mercedes and Red Bull. Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton’s former teammate, has pointed out a few factors that may have made the British driver’s season more challenging, while also choosing to highlight what Charles Leclerc has achieved so far.
A major change
According to Valtteri Bottas, who will join Cadillac in 2026, Lewis Hamilton’s move from Mercedes to Ferrari represented a huge shift. Speaking to Motorsport.com, he said: “It’s always a big change, especially for him. He spent a long time at Mercedes, so he was used to their way of working. He was very much the ‘team’s driver’, you know? So it’s a big change: cultural, team-wise, even in terms of language.” Valtteri Bottas added: “I think everyone agrees that it’s taking him longer than expected to adapt, but he has shown his speed at certain moments. I believe next year he will show what he can still do.”
For Valtteri Bottas, while Lewis Hamilton’s performances are often amplified or judged too harshly, the work done by Charles Leclerc seems to be somewhat underestimated. The Finnish driver said: “I think so [people talk a lot]. People need to talk, it’s natural. But maybe some people have also underestimated Charles [Leclerc], how good he is.” – the future Cadillac driver concluded.
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