We must be honest: Lewis Hamilton’s 2025 season — and Ferrari’s — has started very differently from the expectations that were set. Expectations that, it must be noted, were certainly inflated by the press, but only to a certain extent.
Ferrari, something very different was expected Frankly, it’s impossible to forget Charles Leclerc’s words before the season began: “I would be disappointed if we do not win at least one world title [drivers’ or constructors’, editor’s note].”
These statements were merely reported by journalists, not fabricated. This means that at Maranello, they expected much more from the first five races.
No one expected the performance gap with McLaren. No one expected to be in fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship. No one expected to see Ferrari’s top driver 52 points behind the championship leader.
To Ferrari’s general struggles, Lewis Hamilton ’s evident lack of competitiveness (excluding the Sprint Race weekend in China) has also been added.
The seven-time world champion has been significantly beaten by Charles Leclerc in every race this year, sometimes with enormous gaps: 13 seconds in Japan and over 30 seconds in Saudi Arabia, for example.
Why is Hamilton struggling so much? Turrini’s three hypotheses
On his blog “Profondo Rosso,” Leo Turrini tried to find explanations for this situation. Here’s what he said: “One thing must be acknowledged immediately about Lewis Hamilton, naturally with a hint of unhealthy cynicism: with the doubts fueled by his performances, he has vaguely diverted attention from the real disaster: the SF-25.
“We are talking about a Ferrari that has achieved just one podium in five Grands Prix, on very different types of tracks. Nothing prevents us from hoping for a comeback through developments. But so far, the balance is disastrous. Everyone in Maranello admits it. And it’s ridiculous to point out that ‘with Binotto’… Come on, have some dignity.
“Hypothesis one, which I refuse to believe: Lewis is finished, the last three years at Mercedes drained him, he thought he could revive himself by changing environment but simply has nothing left. It happens, it happened to many drivers in the past. I don’t believe it, we are talking about someone who won at Silverstone just a few months ago. But if it were so, the sooner he quits, the better.
“Hypothesis two: it’s just a matter of time. Ferrari is a completely different world compared to Mercedes, but Hamilton has the maturity to understand what he needs to do to speed up the adaptation process. So, patience.
“Hypothesis three: in truth, Hamilton has nothing to do with it. It all depends on a car that is a flop. Charles Leclerc, as the experts say, manages to ‘drive above’ the car’s limits, while for a newcomer at Maranello, the task is much tougher.
“Personally, I believe the truth lies halfway between hypothesis two and hypothesis three. Which, however, doesn’t inspire much optimism. Save Private Hamilton, okay. But from whom? From himself? From Ferrari? We will only find out by living,” Leo Turrini concluded.
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