Charles Leclerc did not help Lewis Hamilton during the difficulties he faced in his first season at Ferrari in Formula 1, but the reasons behind this situation are clear.
It was not an easy Formula 1 season for either Charles Leclerc or Lewis Hamilton, as both drivers found themselves dealing with a very difficult year for Ferrari. The SF25 project proved to be a failure, with the Monegasque being the only one able to secure all seven podium finishes for the team, apart from Lewis Hamilton’s Sprint race victory in China. Expectations were certainly higher at the start of the season, but reality turned out to be very different.
The driver who paid the highest price was Lewis Hamilton, who lost the head-to-head battle with Charles Leclerc in a decisive manner and experienced his first Ferrari season as one of the toughest of his entire Formula 1 career. The British driver was unable to finish on the podium even once over the course of the season, something that had never happened to him before in F1. Not even the introduction of technical upgrades was enough to improve the situation, quite the opposite. The biggest blow came precisely in the comparison with his team-mate, who decided to comment openly on the situation.
“I wasn’t able to help Hamilton”
Speaking to RacingNews365, Charles Leclerc admitted that he was unable to help Lewis Hamilton due to his own commitments. “I had so many things I was focusing on, for myself and for the team. I tried to make sure that my driving adapted as well as possible to the car,” he said. Because of this, the Monegasque driver was not able to support his team-mate: “It was difficult for me to also dedicate time to helping Hamilton. And then Lewis has achieved much more than I ever have. I really don’t have any advice to give him.”
Leclerc also spoke about the adaptation period that Hamilton needed after joining Ferrari. “It’s definitely a long process when you join a new team,” he explained. “I don’t even remember what it means to join a new team. I’ve been at Ferrari for seven years, so I know how everything works. For Lewis, it’s still new even after a year.”
On this final point, Charles Leclerc concluded by saying: “Everything is completely different. The way you see things, the team, the way of working. It still takes a bit of time to get used to everything.” It is a very interesting perspective from Charles Leclerc, highlighting how even a seven-time world champion needs time to adapt, especially after such a drastic change in his Formula 1 career.
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