It’s a query that has accompanied us all through 2024 and can proceed not less than 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 Components 1 championship, which concluded on December 8 with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, was not the most effective for the seven-time F1 world champion, this can be a well-established truth. The optimistic side was his return to victory: he gained 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 inner battle each in qualifying and in races. This example mirrored on the standings, with George Russell as soon as once more forward of his fellow countryman.
These info led some to imagine that the British driver was on the decline. Clearly, we’re speaking a few driver who will flip 40 in just a few days, so it’s pure to not count on his profession to nonetheless be creating towards its peak. Nevertheless, one have to be cautious with harsh judgments, avoiding drawing maybe hasty conclusions.
Lewis Hamilton didn’t have a combined season as a consequence of a scarcity of motivation or due to an inner battle inside Mercedes after his swap to Ferrari was introduced on February 1. No, the British driver paid the value because of the W15, a automotive he by no means actually linked with, particularly by way of reaching quick lap instances, the place the sensation and symbiosis with the automotive should be complete.
To start with, it needs to 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 may value a number of positions. This dynamic magnified the distinction between the 2 Mercedes drivers.
The pinnacle of monitor engineering, Andrew Shovlin, defined that Hamilton’s difficulties have been primarily as a consequence of a automotive that wasn’t very quick and had a setup window that was too slender. 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 fashion, particularly for the reason that former McLaren driver prefers {smooth} braking. Moreover, the automotive tended to take not-so-smooth racing traces exiting corners, behaving nearly “in jerks,” one other issue not in keeping with Hamilton’s driving fashion. 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 robust performances. Nevertheless, the issue was that the automotive couldn’t carry out like this constantly over the course of the 24 races.
Many drivers who are likely to excel at braking have confronted difficulties with the new-generation automobiles. Hamilton’s points have been evident in all three years of most of these automobiles. So, are the traits of ground-effect automobiles one thing the British champion has by no means absolutely tailored to? In response to 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 actual fact, 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 considerations grew so massive and convincing that the creator of that automotive, Mike Elliott, was successfully sidelined from the crew till his contract was terminated.
Lewis Hamilton’s driving fashion exacerbated the issues on a single lap. The issue in protecting the rear tires throughout the preferrred 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 much like his teammate’s, however the outcomes have been nearly 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 conduct of the W15 – that the difficulties with the rear finish turned obvious.
The automotive tended to snap into oversteer, forcing Lewis to “combat” from the middle of the nook to the exit, which induced him to lose treasured hundredths of a second in every flip. This conduct 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, in keeping with Shovlin himself, didn’t constantly present a automotive that allowed Lewis to succeed in the restrict primarily based on his driving fashion. It wasn’t simple to enter stability window and, particularly for Lewis, as soon as that window was reached, it wasn’t simple to keep up it. This explains weekends that began properly 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 usually confirmed that he was forward of his teammate, however monitor place strongly penalized him as a result of he generally needed to get well many positions, provided that he didn’t all the time 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 – presently known as Undertaking 677 – that’s extra simple 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 only lap, the British driver will probably face the perfect qualifier on the grid, which means the inner battle may flip right into a kind of nightmare for the seven-time world champion. In 2024, Charles Leclerc, whereas beating Carlos Sainz, often confirmed some issue in getting the Pirelli tires into the fitting window.
Numerous work was achieved 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 completely suited to the Monegasque driver’s fashion, which considerably resembles Hamilton’s. Like Lewis, Charles prefers a extra strong entrance finish with a rear finish that’s simpler to manage.
The rear axle must be guided with out displaying the jerky actions Shovlin talked about. With the updates launched throughout the summer season, Ferrari turned a automotive that was much less susceptible to understeer and simpler to drive with a rear finish below management; this helped Charles, who within the second half of 2024 was the motive force who collected essentially the most factors of all the opposite contenders.
Subsequent 12 months, Ferrari can have two drivers who, usually, want a automotive with very particular traits, in contrast to 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 comply with might be a single one: each drivers may gain advantage from this technical situation.
Clearly, we shouldn’t have a crystal ball, nor can we intend to make predictions about what the inner battle at Ferrari will yield, however it’s attainable to think about that the 2025 automotive, if it follows the tendencies seen within the ultimate months of the 2024 season, could possibly be a software that enables Hamilton to beat the difficulties encountered over the last world championship.
Alternatively, Ferrari additionally has some small points to deal with, as crew principal Frederic Vasseur stated throughout the end-of-year press convention. Resolving the thermal administration points with the tires which have often emerged is essential to keep away from the sinusoidal sample that characterised the 2024 season.
At Maranello, they wish 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 regardless that beginning January 1, it is going to be attainable 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 below 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 actually technical and never, as critics declare, as a consequence of a driver on the decline.
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