Lewis Hamilton’s first season in Ferrari colours has been far more difficult than expected, and his clear deficit to Charles Leclerc has raised questions about the factors behind such an unbalanced internal battle. According to Ralf Schumacher, one of the underlying reasons for Hamilton’s struggles may be his long-standing reluctance to spend time in the simulator, a tool that has become increasingly vital in modern Formula 1.
The seven-time world champion has faced major challenges during his debut campaign with the Scuderia. Across 23 race weekends, Hamilton has yet to secure a single podium finish, putting him on the verge of completing his first ever Formula 1 season without a top-three result. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc has extracted significantly more performance from the SF-25, collecting seven podiums and effectively carrying Ferrari’s fight throughout the year.
Midway through the season, reports emerged suggesting that Leclerc had grown frustrated with the situation, feeling that the engineering staff in Maranello were being forced to devote additional time to helping Hamilton find solutions to his ongoing difficulties.
Ralf Schumacher explains why Hamilton’s simulator habits may be contributing to his struggles
During an interview with Formel1.de on their official YouTube channel, Ralf Schumacher outlined two key factors he believed were responsible for Hamilton’s performance deficit relative to Leclerc. Schumacher stated that he doubted Hamilton could return to his former level and suggested that the issues seen this year might continue into the next season. He also emphasised that Hamilton remained very much an “old-school” driver, one who reportedly disliked spending time in the simulator and rarely used it.
Schumacher argued that such an approach had become a major handicap in today’s Formula 1 environment, where real-world testing is severely restricted and simulator work plays a central role in development. He noted that while Hamilton seemed unwilling or uninterested in adapting to this new reality, Leclerc was known to spend extensive hours in the simulator, something that drivers such as Max Verstappen also make full use of.
According to Schumacher, this difference in preparation gave Leclerc a “huge advantage” over his teammate, particularly in fine-tuning the car and improving consistency. He also expressed surprise at comments from Mercedes boss Toto Wolff—who had once said that his drivers simply needed to drive while the engineers handled the rest—suggesting that Hamilton may not have been as involved in guiding the team’s direction during his Mercedes years as some believed. Schumacher implied that this approach was now hindering Ferrari, which required strong technical feedback from its drivers during a crucial development phase.
Toto Wolff has been trying to support Hamilton through his Ferrari difficulties
Despite no longer working together, Wolff continues to maintain a close relationship with Hamilton after their twelve highly successful years at Mercedes. Bradley Lord, Mercedes’ chief communications officer, recently revealed that Wolff had been offering encouragement to Hamilton in private, hoping that the former Silver Arrows driver would eventually regain his confidence and rhythm at Ferrari. Lord’s remarks suggested that Wolff’s motivation was sincere, even if Hamilton’s eventual resurgence could negatively impact Mercedes in the constructors’ championship.
These comments followed Wolff’s earlier assessment that Hamilton looked like “a fish out of water” in the Ferrari garage, a view he shared after the Las Vegas Grand Prix—one of Hamilton’s most difficult weekends of the season. Hamilton qualified last on the grid in Las Vegas, marking the first time a Ferrari driver had started from the back since Giancarlo Fisichella at the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
As the season approaches its conclusion, Hamilton faces the challenge of adapting his methods and finding greater comfort within Ferrari’s environment, while Leclerc continues to thrive under the current system. Whether Hamilton can close the gap in 2025 may depend on how willing he is to embrace modern tools like the simulator—an area where his teammate currently holds a clear advantage.
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