If Max Verstappen detects a sceptical response when he tells individuals he received’t be a Method 1 driver in his forties, it’s as a result of we as soon as heard the identical from his friends who later went on to do precisely that.
Fernando Alonso admitted he by no means anticipated to hold on racing into his fifth decade. As we speak one other a number of champion driver has joined him.
For a very long time, Lewis Hamilton insisted there was no means he would proceed racing past his thirties. But when he’s celebrating with a (vegan) birthday cake right this moment, it would want room for 40 candles.
Three years in the past, Mercedes crew principal Toto Wolff stated the examples set by ageing athletes akin to Alonso and the NFL’s Tom Brady confirmed that Hamilton might do the identical. However though he later determined to race on, he received’t achieve this with Mercedes.
It’s almost a yr since Hamilton shocked Wolff by telling him he’d signed a deal to affix Ferrari in 2025. Whereas the romance of Ferrari had an apparent enchantment within the twilight of his profession, the choice additionally confirmed which crew Hamilton felt was finest positioned to ship a championship-winning automobile.
On the time he determined to maneuver, Hamilton had seen Mercedes fail to grasp F1’s newest guidelines set for 2 years operating. He stated the crew hadn’t taken his issues over their W13 chassis severely sufficient. Wolff and technical director James Allison each prolonged their commitments to the crew in January final yr, leaving no doubts about stability on the high of the crew, however Hamilton nonetheless selected to go elsewhere.
He determined to reunite with Frederic Vasseur, whose ART crew took Hamilton to the GP2 (now Method 2) championship in 2006, propelling him into Method 1 the next yr. Vasseur has made successful of his appointment in command of Ferrari two years in the past.
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Some questioned Ferrari’s choice to drop Mattia Binotto after 2022, arguing it was a call foisted upon the racing crew by higher administration. Nevertheless Vasseur has proved an astute selection, imposing calmness upon the crew whereas tackling the issue which price them a transparent championship shot when the technical laws had been overhauled three seasons in the past.
Since Hamilton’s transfer to Ferrari was introduced, the rent-a-quote brigade have been doing the rounds, supplying clickbait-friendly forecasts of doom. Definitely there isn’t a scarcity of examples of a number of champions who did not take additional titles after being lured to the Scuderia: Alonso, Sebastian Vettel, Alain Prost and so forth.
However Hamilton’s transfer seems completely timed. Ferrari ended 2024 in nice form, profitable three of the final 9 rounds and ending an in depth second within the constructors’ championship. With little altering within the technical laws for this yr, Hamilton can realistically count on his first Ferrari can be able to profitable the championship.
The essential query is: Can the identical be stated of the now 40-year-old driver?
Final yr was all the time going to be a peculiar one for Hamilton as soon as he determined it might be his final at Mercedes. Whereas the crew made some enhancements with its overhauled W15, they nonetheless appeared at a loss to grasp it for many of the season, and even within the latter levels of the yr had been considerably shocked after they stumbled throughout a working set-up.
Hamilton by no means clicked with the automobile over a single flying lap. Worryingly for him and Ferrari, his qualifying efficiency has slipped because the present era of technical laws was launched. He out-qualified George Russell of their first season collectively, tied in 2023 and was emphatically crushed final yr.
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Now he’ll go up towards a driver who has developed a popularity as a one-lap specialist: Charles Leclerc. Though Alonso is demonstrating {that a} driver nicely into his forties can nonetheless reduce it in F1, nobody would declare his crew mate is at Leclerc’s degree.
Whether or not Hamilton could make an instantaneous success of his transition to Ferrari can even rely upon how rapidly he can modify to his new setting. Pre-season testing of their new automobile will stay as tightly restricted as final yr, and though the crew intend to run him in an older automobile, new guidelines for this season now cap how a lot of that he can do as nicely.
There’s additionally the numerous matter of adjusting to a brand new race engineer after 12 years with ‘Bono’ – the longest and most profitable such partnership in F1 historical past. There have been some hiccups on this aspect of Ferrari’s operation final yr, notably in Las Vegas.
Inevitably, whether or not Hamilton can struggle for that record-breaking eighth world championship this yr or in future seasons will firstly rely upon the standard of the automobile Ferrari produce. However final yr urged the sphere had closed up sufficient that this can be a robust risk, during which case we’ll quickly get a learn on whether or not Hamilton remains to be on the peak of his powers, or if the shine has began to come back off.
However he has already cemented his place as one of many all-time greats of the game. After right this moment, if Hamilton wins one other world championship he’ll solely add to that standing. Not merely by becoming a member of the hallowed ranks of Ferrari champions, however turning into the primary driver to take a title as a 40-year-old since Jack Brabham, nearly 60 years in the past.
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