His first Formula 1 season with Ferrari turned out to be a red nightmare for Lewis Hamilton. Two F1 experts agree: The superstar made a crucial mistake that has already been the downfall of Sebastian Vettel and other F1 greats.
The list of failed Formula 1 greats at Ferrari is long: Alain Prost, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel – they all came to Maranello as multiple world champions to give the Scuderia world championship titles. They all left as failures.
Lewis Hamilton is also on the bitter path to joining the list of Ferrari losers. After his debut season, he finished a meager sixth place in the Drivers’ World Championship. No podium, just a sprint victory in China. Far too little considering the huge expectations with which the Brit arrived in Maranello in January.
Michael Schumacher’s role model still outshines everything at Ferrari. Schumacher also arrived in 1996 as a two-time world champion and painstakingly built up the team for years before winning five world championship titles in a row from 200 to 2004 – a Formula 1 record.
Video: Hamilton at Ferrari: A nightmare in red
Formula 1: Hamilton not positioned at Ferrari like Schumacher
The crucial difference between Schumacher and those who failed: The German was not alone; he brought with him mastermind Ross Brawn and designer Rory Byrne from Benetton. In addition, Schumacher had a confident, authoritarian team boss in Jean Todt over him.
“Lewis wanted to go to Ferrari and become the next Michael Schumacher,” F1 expert Martin Brundle looked back on “Sky” about his British compatriot’s horror year and recalled that Schumacher also “took years” until success came.
In contrast to Schumacher, Hamilton came to Ferrari without a familiar environment; his long-time Mercedes racing engineer Peter “Bono” Bonnington, for example, did not follow him. A crucial mistake, says Brundle. “He would have needed more people around him. These hundred little things in everyday life – infrastructure, focus, processes – you only notice them when they are missing.”
RTLExpert Christian Danner agrees with Brundle’s assessment in his sport.de– Season conclusion: “Lewis had his own immortal status at Mercedes. When he went to Ferrari, he thought that now his greatness, which he undoubtedly has, would come into play,” says Danner, who criticizes: “You can’t establish the processes of an English team in Maranello. That doesn’t work. An Alain Prost couldn’t do that, a Fernando Alonso couldn’t do that, a Sebastian Vettel couldn’t and now Hamilton can’t either.”