Ferrari principal Fred Vasseur on Lewis Hamilton: “Too self-critical and extreme with the media”. Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur explains why Lewis Hamilton is struggling in his first season with Ferrari.

The Ferrari team principal highlighted the major challenges facing his driver, who needs to calm down and regain confidence.

Many challenges in the first year at Ferrari
As the Formula 1 summer break comes to an end with the Dutch Grand Prix on the last weekend of August, Ferrari has faced the full scope of difficulties experienced by Lewis Hamilton. Beyond underwhelming results in his first season at Maranello, Hamilton has also been extremely self-critical, especially during the recent Hungarian Grand Prix, where he went so far as to call himself “useless.” These attitudes and performances, notably below those of his teammate Charles Leclerc, have sparked negative commentary from former drivers regarding the struggles of the seven-time world champion. But why is Hamilton encountering so many challenges?

A new environment
Auto Motor und Sport asked Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur to explain, and he offered several perspectives: “Often circumstances play a decisive role, and Lewis has recently been unlucky. In Budapest, he was ahead of Charles in Q1, and in Q2 he was only a tenth slower. He missed advancing by just 15 thousandths of a second. In the end, one driver finishes first and the other twelfth. It seems absurd, but it wasn’t much—otherwise, our two drivers would have ended eleventh and twelfth. In hindsight, I have to admit that we—meaning Lewis and I—underestimated the change of environment. He had spent 18 years with the same team if I can consider McLaren and Mercedes as one home. It was a British team, and the motorsport environment was always the same. The difference between Ferrari and Mercedes is greater than between Mercedes and McLaren. When Lewis arrived at Ferrari, we naively thought he would have everything under control. He’s not like Carlos Sainz, who changes teams every few years and is familiar with this process. Lewis needed four or five races to take control of the situation. Since the Canadian Grand Prix, he is practically on track.”

Too harsh on himself
From 2007 to the present, Lewis Hamilton has won six of his seven world championships with Mercedes, in addition to his 2008 title with McLaren. Joining Ferrari was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for the British driver, yet he continues to face persistent challenges. So what can help him feel more comfortable and regain confidence? “Stay calm,” Vasseur continued, “and recognize that the first step has already been successfully taken. Don’t let things like what happened in Budapest get you down. Lewis is very self-critical. He is always extremely exaggerated in his judgments. Sometimes he is too harsh on the car, sometimes on himself. He wants to get the maximum from himself and from every team member. We need to calm him down and explain that in Q2 he was only a tenth away from the driver who ultimately claimed pole position. It’s not the end of the world. The messages he communicates only make things worse. Usually, he is this extreme only with the media. When he enters the briefing room, he’s usually already calm. That’s just how he is. For me, it’s not a drama. He is very demanding of others, but also of himself. That’s fine. Nico Hülkenberg was the same when he raced for me in Formula 3. He was extremely demanding of the team, but also punctual every morning at 6:30.”

The level of problems
Excluding the Sprint victory at the Chinese Grand Prix, as well as his results at Imola and Silverstone, in every other race, Charles Leclerc has finished ahead of Lewis Hamilton, with the Monegasque driver standing on the podium five times. Hamilton has yet to achieve a top-three finish in a main race with Ferrari. Are the differences between the two drivers due to small details or particular difficulties that Hamilton is experiencing with the SF-25? “We solve problems step by step,” Fred Vasseur explained. “They are not huge—they just seem that way. If the braking system isn’t exactly as the driver wants, perhaps half a tenth is lost. From the outside, it’s often hard to immediately understand where exactly that half a tenth is lost. A time difference this small can ruin the entire weekend. It can be the difference between Q2 and Q3. Sometimes Lewis exaggerates the problems he sees in his car. The team obviously wants to react, and everyone jumps on this issue.”

According to Fred Vasseur, these problems are not related to the ground effect: “I don’t believe so. While we had bouncing issues, maybe yes. But even when we always drive at the limit of bouncing, we now have the situation under control.”