Wow. Max Verstappen...the "lunch box" guy's folk hero. I had no idea so many of you guys knew Max personally.
Leclerc has been with team and the evolving car for years, whereas Hamilton is still acclimating with the team and a radically different car than he was used to. I'd expect him to struggle this year. Next year, they both have a new regulations car and will be more telling. I do think Hamilton has better strategy instincts than Leclerc or the pit wall, and he's more confident in voicing his preferences, but Leclerc seems to have an outright pace advantage at the moment. All the best, Andrew.
There's a flipside to that coin Andrew. When Hamilton was at MercedesAMGF1 with Russell, what happened then? The car wasn't under any new regulations? Hamilton wasn't acclimating to a new team YET Russell beat Hamilton 2x out of the 3 years in seasonal points and Russell doesn't have any WDC titles. So what does that say about Hamiltons current form then and what does that say about Hamiltons current form now. I already have a pretty good idea of where Hamilton stands then and now....as well as others.
The experts here forget changing teams, locations, brakes / PU/ Suspension, dominant language, new team leader etc etc takes time. Gosh........why isnt he winning every race lol
He(Hamilton) wasn't winning every race for 3 years prior to coming to Ferrari with Russell now was he?
They forget he already changed teams from Mclaren to Merc, beat Rosberg the first year. Went to Mclaren, first year and beat Alonso. Sir Lewis Hamilton has already done and forgot about these things they mention.
Toto Wolff said that the Mercedes car in the last few years just didn't suit Hamilton's driving style. I recall he said something along the lines of Hamilton is very good driving on the edge at 100% but to keep the tires from going off even over a single lap, you really have to drive it at 99% everywhere. A bit like with Daniel Ricciardo, he didn't suddenly become an awful driver and lose his ability to brake late. Just the regulations kept evolving and they evolved away from a setup that he was brilliant at driving. I'm not sure the current regulation cars really suit Hamilton's all that much, but he does seem to be adapting slowly. I'm curious to see what happens with the 2026 regulations and whether he likes the feel. All the best, Andrew.
Helps to have a good car - surely not a shock to know that. Ask Max when his car wouldnt take a podium last year at times lol! Did Russell win all races??? No..........................
to be fair Leclerc doesn't have a strategic bone in his body (or at the very least, just goes with whatever the team says...even when he demands otherwise the team just ignores him). As for Leclerc having been there longer...Didn't stop Russell when the roles were reversed. It didn't stop Leclerc when he came to Ferrari. It didn't stop Max when he came to Red Bull. The list goes on. For someone we've been constantly hammered in as one of the greatest of all time, you'd expect him to at the very least be capable of beating his teammate.
Quite a few years of systems use and habits to break. Not easy. Is he adapting fast. Possibly but we all want to see results quickly now in this hyper/short attention span world. Not always possible. Sainz has adapted maybe a bit faster but it did take him some time. All people are different and wont follow the same pattern to a result. Its an interesting process to watch. If Charles leaves he will learn as LH has and see the light about differences from brakes to management to team leaders etc. He doesnt yet entertain the possibility.
I think some regulations suit some drivers more than others and don't think Hamilton has really clicked with the ground effects era where the cars are so sensitive to ride height, launching over curbs is not something the cars tolerate well, and the tires have such tight operating windows. Other drivers adapted to this a bit better than he has. We'll see what 2026 brings. I think either he's competitive for championships in the new regulations or he contemplates retirement from driving at the end of his current contract. I can see him wanting to be a driver manager or have some sort of driver-coaching role in a team in future. All the best, Andrew.
He's 40 LOL. Lets try this again. Who has FA -- faced Stroll LOL. Holy BatCave did you think Charles would be slower. I dont see ANY driver as the greatest at all. Charles is doing exactly as predicted. He is faster. No one at all really predicted otherwise.
No around here its both if not 1 then the other lol. Read the posts. No kidding beating your team mate. Never knew such lol. He was not predicted to beat him. At all.
Adaptation is a skill really needed to be considered one of the best. If you can't adapt, you're simply not the best...Vettel also struggled to adapt somewhat and he (rightfully) got vilified for it.
IDGAF what's said around here. The metric his to beat your teammate first, I and plenty others have held that standard. If the car isn't quick enough to win, can't expect a driver to actually challenge for wins legitimately. Your very first metric is your teammate. When you're being paid 4x as much, you really are expected to beat that f'in guy. You can be the contrarian all you like but doesn't stop the fact that Lewis is being beaten soundly, again. Button, Rosberg, Russell, now Leclerc. Car merchant of the highest order.
I'm not arguing whether he's the best of all time or not, that's a pretty tired subject. I'm commenting on my thoughts as to why we're not seeing a prolific champion do as well in the car as one might have expected. If you want yet another GOAT discussion, you can have that without me. I really don't care. All the best, Andrew.
Oh don't get me wrong I know what you're saying. I'm just thoroughly enjoying being proven right (not to you!) against the worshippers
I agree about getting results. Lewis has proven capable of getting a result when he has a car underneath him. I think that is one of his strengths. If he has the best car, he typically will get your a top 2 finish. If he has the 5th best car, he typically will get you a top 10 finish. I think he's proven to be better than most when it comes to delivering the expected result in a given car. Where I think he is lacking, is getting results above and beyond what anyone expects the car is capable of. That's okay, very very few can do this, especially on a regular basis. You could write books on how the likes of Schumacher, Alonso, and Verstappen got results that the car never should have delivered. Not so much for Hamilton.
