It’s a query that has accompanied us all through 2024 and can proceed a minimum of till March: was Lewis Hamilton a technical asset for Ferrari, or was his signing pushed solely by business causes, because the fiercest critics declare?
The 2024 Method 1 championship, which concluded on December 8 with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, was not probably the greatest for the seven-time F1 world champion, this can be a well-established truth. The optimistic side was his return to victory: he received twice, each on iconic and extremely demanding tracks like Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps. The draw back is that he as soon as once more misplaced the interior battle each in qualifying and in races. This case mirrored on the standings, with George Russell as soon as once more forward of his fellow countryman.
These information led some to consider that the British driver was on the decline. Clearly, we’re speaking a couple of driver who will flip 40 in just a few days, so it’s pure to not anticipate his profession to nonetheless be growing towards its peak. Nonetheless, one should be cautious with harsh judgments, avoiding drawing maybe hasty conclusions.
Lewis Hamilton didn’t have a combined season resulting from a scarcity of motivation or due to an inner battle inside Mercedes after his change to Ferrari was introduced on February 1. No, the British driver paid the value as a result of W15, a automotive he by no means really related with, particularly by way of attaining quick lap instances, the place the sensation and symbiosis with the automotive should be complete.
To start with, it must be emphasised that the common hole Lewis Hamilton needed to George Russell in qualifying was amplified by way of grid positions. With a really carefully matched efficiency bundle, even dropping just a few tenths might value a number of positions. This dynamic magnified the distinction between the 2 Mercedes drivers.
The top of monitor engineering, Andrew Shovlin, defined that Hamilton’s difficulties have been primarily resulting from a automotive that wasn’t very quick and had a setup window that was too slim. Some could rightfully level out that these points additionally affected George Russell.
One of many technical traits of the W15 was its tendency to lock the brakes throughout braking, a characteristic that didn’t go well with Hamilton’s driving model, particularly because the former McLaren driver prefers {smooth} braking. Moreover, the automotive tended to take not-so-smooth racing traces exiting corners, behaving virtually “in jerks,” one other issue not in step with Hamilton’s driving model. In races the place these points have been overcome, like Silverstone, Spa-Francorchamps, and even Las Vegas, Lewis managed to carry his personal and ship sturdy performances. Nonetheless, the issue was that the automotive couldn’t carry out like this persistently over the course of the 24 races.
Many drivers who are inclined to excel at braking have confronted difficulties with the new-generation automobiles. Hamilton’s points have been evident in all three years of a majority of these automobiles. So, are the traits of ground-effect automobiles one thing the British champion has by no means totally tailored to? In keeping with Shovlin, that’s not the answer to the puzzle.
Within the engineer’s opinion, the issue stemmed from a attribute that has plagued Mercedes automobiles over the previous three years: getting the automotive to rotate whereas stopping overheating of the rear tires. In truth, final 12 months Hamilton had complained extensively in regards to the rear finish of the W14, even elevating doubts in regards to the automotive’s design philosophy. These issues grew so massive and convincing that the creator of that automotive, Mike Elliott, was successfully sidelined from the staff till his contract was terminated.
Lewis Hamilton’s driving model exacerbated the issues on a single lap. The problem in preserving the rear tires inside the superb operational window was felt considerably this season, resulting in a transparent inner defeat by way of pushing on a lap.
George Russell demonstrated higher adaptability to the traits of the Silver Arrow. It’s not that Hamilton didn’t attempt to use setups just like his teammate’s, however the outcomes have been virtually by no means passable. Lewis’ issues turned evident when pushing to the utmost on a quick lap. It was in these circumstances – and we noticed this repeatedly within the dynamic habits of the W15 – that the difficulties with the rear finish turned obvious.
The automotive tended to snap into oversteer, forcing Lewis to “struggle” from the middle of the nook to the exit, which induced him to lose treasured hundredths of a second in every flip. This habits was due each to the setups and to how the quick lap was ready with rear tires that weren’t completely within the thermal window.
Mercedes, based on Shovlin himself, did not persistently present a automotive that allowed Lewis to achieve the restrict primarily based on his driving model. It wasn’t simple to enter an excellent steadiness window and, particularly for Lewis, as soon as that window was reached, it wasn’t simple to take care of it. This explains weekends that began nicely by way of setup however ended poorly with an lack of ability to adapt to a altering monitor. These points light when the distances elevated. On race tempo, Hamilton typically confirmed that he was forward of his teammate, however monitor place strongly penalized him as a result of he typically needed to get better many positions, provided that he didn’t at all times make it into Q3, one thing Russell managed with extra consistency.
Lewis Hamilton and his prospects at Ferrari
Lewis Hamilton arrives at Ferrari hoping to discover a automotive – at present known as Challenge 677 – that’s extra easy and has a wider operational window, enabling him to be quick within the race – one thing that occurs comparatively simply – but in addition in qualifying.
On the one lap, the British driver will seemingly face one of the best qualifier on the grid, that means the interior battle might flip right into a kind of nightmare for the seven-time world champion. In 2024, Charles Leclerc, whereas beating Carlos Sainz, sometimes confirmed some issue in getting the Pirelli tires into the precise window.
Plenty of work was finished with Callum Frith, Ferrari’s tire chief, however not all difficulties have been overcome. The Ferrari SF-24, at one level, took a improvement course that wasn’t totally suited to the Monegasque driver’s model, which considerably resembles Hamilton’s. Like Lewis, Charles prefers a extra stable entrance finish with a rear finish that’s simpler to regulate.
The rear axle must be guided with out displaying the jerky actions Shovlin talked about. With the updates launched through the summer season, Ferrari turned a automotive that was much less liable to understeer and simpler to drive with a rear finish beneath management; this helped Charles, who within the second half of 2024 was the driving force who collected essentially the most factors of all the opposite contenders.
Subsequent 12 months, Ferrari can have two drivers who, on the whole, favor a automotive with very particular traits, not like what occurred in 2024 with Carlos Sainz, who tends to favor barely understeering automobiles. Clearly, this divergence in driving types has additionally mirrored within the improvement path taken by the Maranello engineers and technicians. Subsequent 12 months, nevertheless, the trail to observe shall be a single one: each drivers may benefit from this technical situation.
Clearly, we shouldn’t have a crystal ball, nor will we intend to make predictions about what the interior battle at Ferrari will yield, but it surely’s potential to think about that the 2025 automotive, if it follows the traits seen within the remaining months of the 2024 season, could possibly be a instrument that permits Hamilton to beat the difficulties encountered over the last world championship.
Alternatively, Ferrari additionally has some small points to handle, as staff principal Frederic Vasseur mentioned through the end-of-year press convention. Resolving the thermal administration points with the tires which have sometimes emerged is essential to keep away from the sinusoidal sample that characterised the 2024 season.
At Maranello, they need to keep away from the highs and lows that finally weighed on the constructors’ championship battle, they usually intend to arrange a quick automotive proper from the beginning, one that may develop though beginning January 1, will probably be potential to work on the brand new era automobiles that may characterize the 2026 championship.
Lewis Hamilton hopes to discover a automotive that isn’t as temperamental because the final three he needed to drive beneath the Mercedes banner. We’ll see if Ferrari’s technicians can succeed on this endeavor and if the difficulties the British champion confronted final 12 months have been really technical and never, as critics declare, resulting from a driver on the decline.
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