It’s a query that has accompanied us all through 2024 and can proceed at the least till March: was Lewis Hamilton a technical asset for Ferrari, or was his signing pushed solely by industrial 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 constructive 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 imagine that the British driver was on the decline. Clearly, we’re speaking a few driver who will flip 40 in a number of days, so it’s pure to not count on 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 blended season because of a scarcity of motivation or due to an inside battle inside Mercedes after his change to Ferrari was introduced on February 1. No, the British driver paid the value because of the W15, a automobile he by no means really linked with, particularly by way of reaching quick lap occasions, the place the sensation and symbiosis with the automobile have to be whole.
Initially, it ought 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 a number of tenths might value a number of positions. This dynamic magnified the distinction between the 2 Mercedes drivers.
The pinnacle of observe engineering, Andrew Shovlin, defined that Hamilton’s difficulties had been primarily because of a automobile that wasn’t very quick and had a setup window that was too slender. Some might 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 because the former McLaren driver prefers {smooth} braking. Moreover, the automobile tended to take not-so-smooth racing traces exiting corners, behaving nearly “in jerks,” one other issue not according to Hamilton’s driving fashion. In races the place these points had 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 automobile 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 vehicles. Hamilton’s points had been evident in all three years of a lot of these vehicles. So, are the traits of ground-effect vehicles one thing the British champion has by no means totally tailored to? In response to Shovlin, that isn’t the answer to the puzzle.
Within the engineer’s opinion, the issue stemmed from a attribute that has plagued Mercedes vehicles over the previous three years: getting the automobile to rotate whereas stopping overheating of the rear tires. Actually, final 12 months Hamilton had complained extensively concerning the rear finish of the W14, even elevating doubts concerning the automobile’s design philosophy. These considerations grew so massive and convincing that the creator of that automobile, 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 conserving the rear tires throughout the best operational window was felt considerably this season, resulting in a transparent inside 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 had been nearly by no means passable. Lewis’ issues grew to become 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 grew to become obvious.
The automobile tended to snap into oversteer, forcing Lewis to “struggle” from the middle of the nook to the exit, which prompted him to lose valuable 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, in response to Shovlin himself, didn’t persistently present a automobile that allowed Lewis to succeed in the restrict primarily based on his driving fashion. It wasn’t simple to enter a great 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 observe. These points light when the distances elevated. On race tempo, Hamilton typically confirmed that he was forward of his teammate, however observe place strongly penalized him as a result of he generally needed to get well many positions, on condition 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 automobile – presently known as Undertaking 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 only lap, the British driver will possible face the perfect qualifier on the grid, which means the interior battle might flip right into a type 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 appropriate window.
Lots of work was performed with Callum Frith, Ferrari’s tire chief, however not all difficulties have been overcome. The Ferrari SF-24, at one level, took a growth route that wasn’t totally 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 regulate.
The rear axle must be guided with out exhibiting the jerky actions Shovlin talked about. With the updates launched in the course of the summer season, Ferrari grew to become a automobile that was much less vulnerable to understeer and simpler to drive with a rear finish underneath management; this helped Charles, who within the second half of 2024 was the motive force who collected probably the most factors of all the opposite contenders.
Subsequent 12 months, Ferrari could have two drivers who, usually, favor a automobile with very particular traits, in contrast to what occurred in 2024 with Carlos Sainz, who tends to favor barely understeering vehicles. Clearly, this divergence in driving kinds has additionally mirrored within the growth path taken by the Maranello engineers and technicians. Subsequent 12 months, nevertheless, the trail to observe might be a single one: each drivers may benefit from this technical situation.
Clearly, we should not have a crystal ball, nor can we intend to make predictions about what the interior battle at Ferrari will yield, nevertheless it’s potential to think about that the 2025 automobile, if it follows the tendencies seen within the ultimate months of the 2024 season, may very well be a instrument that enables Hamilton to beat the difficulties encountered over the past world championship.
However, Ferrari additionally has some small points to deal with, as crew principal Frederic Vasseur mentioned in the course of 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 need to keep away from the highs and lows that in the end weighed on the constructors’ championship battle, and so they intend to arrange a quick automobile proper from the beginning, one that may develop despite the fact that beginning January 1, it will likely be potential to work on the brand new technology vehicles that can characterize the 2026 championship.
Lewis Hamilton hopes to discover a automobile that isn’t as temperamental because the final three he needed to drive underneath 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 had been really technical and never, as critics declare, because of a driver on the decline.
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