Following the Hungarian Grand Prix, all eyes were on the downfall of Lewis Hamilton. The British star had a disastrous weekend with Ferrari – after being eliminated in Q2, he did not finish higher than twelfth in the race. This was in stark contrast to his teammate Charles Leclerc, who secured pole position for the Scuderia. However, former driver Juan Pablo Montoya warns that Leclerc may lose ground.
Montoya predicts significant changes within Ferrari. Hamilton made his debut in Maranello this season, but so far, he has seemed uncomfortable in the red car, with only a single sprint victory to his name. According to Montoya, the seven-time world champion will increasingly assert himself within the team, which could impact Leclerc’s position.
Hamilton’s Turnaround
“What’s really happening is that Lewis has reached a point where he wants to beat his teammate – in this case, Charles Leclerc,” Montoya explained to AS. “Behind the scenes, he’s working incredibly hard, but the car is just not to his liking yet. The engineers are starting to understand him better, but they still haven’t fully grasped how difficult this car is to drive.” According to Montoya, Leclerc currently has the advantage of having raced for Ferrari for years, but in the future, Hamilton could challenge him.
“Leclerc seems very fast because he can handle this car,” Montoya referred to Charles’ masterful pole lap in Budapest. “I think that as Ferrari tunes the car more to Lewis’s driving style and he feels more comfortable, life will become harder for Charles. So far, Hamilton has rarely posed a threat, but we’ll see.” The 40-year-old Brit appeared defeated during the race weekend in Hungary, although several experts acknowledge that Hamilton often only comes to life in the second half of the season.”
