Lewis Hamilton is progressively coming to phrases with the truth that he’s not ‘the child of the home’ at Ferrari and is dealing with appreciable cultural variations after his high-profile transfer from Mercedes. This angle comes from Eric Boullier, former Renault and Lotus workforce principal in addition to ex-McLaren racing director.
The Briton’s switch from Mercedes—a workforce that formed him right into a seven-time Method 1 world champion and helped him shatter quite a few data—to Ferrari, fulfilling a lifelong ambition to race for the enduring Scuderia, stays probably the most talked-about transitions in F1 historical past.
Regardless of securing a dash race win earlier than the Chinese language Grand Prix early within the 2025 Method 1 season, the 40-year-old driver has discovered it difficult to go away a significant mark in common Grand Prix races. His finest end up to now has been fourth place, narrowly lacking out on the rostrum on the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola.
Simply two weeks later, Lewis Hamilton left the Circuit de Catalunya after ending sixth in the Barcelona Grand Prix in Montmelo, showing puzzled and pissed off by his incapability to extract aggressive tempo from his Ferrari automobile.
Eric Boullier, who spent 4 years at Renault/Lotus and over 4 and a half years with McLaren, respects Lewis Hamilton’s choice to go away Mercedes and be a part of Ferrari, calling it a “very courageous transfer.” Nonetheless, he additionally acknowledges that difficulties had been at all times to be anticipated.
He defined that when a driver has achieved every part and is extensively considered the GOAT (Biggest of All Time), adapting to a brand new workforce, particularly one like Ferrari, is a major problem. In line with Boullier, transferring from Mercedes—a dominant high workforce with which Hamilton loved long-term success—to a different elite workforce corresponding to Ferrari is way extra complicated than switching to a midfield squad.
On the subject of cultural adjustment, Eric Boullier drew parallels to Fernando Alonso’s struggles when he joined McLaren in 2007 after profitable two consecutive championships with Renault. Alonso anticipated preferential therapy at McLaren however discovered himself competing in opposition to Hamilton, then a rookie, who shortly grew to become the workforce’s focus.
The French motor racing engineer and supervisor highlighted that Lewis Hamilton is now experiencing an analogous dynamic at Ferrari with Charles Leclerc, the place the Briton is not the favored “child of the home.”
He noticed that Lewis Hamilton’s radio communications together with his race engineer recommend he’s nonetheless struggling to settle into the brand new workforce setting, and Eric Boullier believes it is going to take time for the seven-time Method 1 world champion to totally adapt to the brand new actuality. Additional, the previous racing director of the McLaren F1 Staff famous that Lewis Hamilton would have felt extra comfy being English in a British-based workforce like Mercedes, whose headquarters and energy unit amenities are situated in Brackley and Brixworth, England.
Eric Boullier even in contrast Lewis Hamilton’s state of affairs to that of former F1 driver Romain Grosjean, whom he signed for Lotus in 2012 regardless of widespread skepticism. Many doubted Grosjean’s talents initially, however Boullier stood by him and was finally confirmed proper as Romain Grosjean grew to become a podium contender.
The previous workforce principal pressured that workforce tradition considerably impacts how nicely a driver integrates, suggesting it is a key problem for Lewis Hamilton at in Maranello.
He emphasised that whereas Hamilton’s pace and standing as one of many best drivers in F1 historical past are undisputed, it’s clear that Charles Leclerc feels extra at house inside Ferrari’s tradition, whereas Hamilton remains to be working to search out his place.
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