Hamilton-Leclerc: Ferrari’s Strategic Edge in a Fierce Duel

Hamilton’s potential move to Ferrari could spark Leclerc’s growth into a world-class champion, creating a powerful dynamic for the Scuderia.

Rob Smedley, former engineer for Felipe Massa at Ferrari, doesn’t expect Lewis Hamilton to arrive at Scuderia Ferrari as a presumptive winner next season. The Brit believes the current Mercedes F1 driver will show humility.

“I don’t think Lewis will come in with that attitude. I think Lewis is a true professional,” Smedley explained on the Formula for Success podcast. “He knows how good Charles is, but he will do everything to beat him over 24 races.”

“I think he’ll beat him. I think there will come a time when he won’t be able to, but that time is certainly not now. The guy is incredibly fit, and he’s mentally so strong when motivated.”

“I don’t want to talk about a lack of motivation, as that would be disrespectful to the guy, but I think we’ve seen, from time to time, some frustration when he isn’t able to perform at 100% as he has in the past.”

“But there’s no doubt about his passion and his will to win. Look at his reaction after this year’s British Grand Prix; that tells you everything you need to know, doesn’t it?”

“Here’s a guy who hasn’t won in years, and then he comes back and wins—it was a masterclass by Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time world champion, in how to win a race. An incredibly impressive drive. You saw the passion at the end, you saw the emotion.”

“This guy wants to win, and like anyone successful in life, there’s also a measure of humility that makes you question what you can do better. So, I don’t think Lewis will join Ferrari thinking he can just beat Charles because I’m not sure he can.”

Opposite Smedley, David Coulthard expressed confidence in Hamilton’s ability to achieve victories quickly: “I think Charles will, on average, be faster.”

“But I think there’s a real chance that Lewis will secure more victories until Charles becomes the finished product of a world champion and transforms into that man who suddenly starts delivering such performances year after year.”

“Performances we’ve seen from Lewis or Michael [Schumacher] or Ayrton [Senna], or whoever your favorite driver is. Otherwise, he might become what we consider someone who hasn’t fully arrived—fast, brilliant to watch in qualifying, but making too many mistakes.”

According to Smedley, it’s Ferrari that will benefit from this battle: “There’s also another point in this chronological trajectory, which is physiological. It’s when Lewis will start to slow down a bit. And when that happens, we don’t know—it’s certainly not in the next year or two.”

“Because if you look at how strong he is psychologically, how motivated he is, how physically fit he is, it’s not happening anytime soon. But isn’t this also a win-win situation for Ferrari?”

“I don’t want to call him a young apprentice, but he will feel a very different dynamic and relationship than he did with Carlos Sainz, for example, where they were two peers, both at the same stage of their careers, or at very similar stages, and both needed to fight each other.”

“Charles has some leeway here, doesn’t he? He’s facing a seven-time world champion. It’s a completely different situation, but it’s like Felipe Massa in 2006 against Michael Schumacher.”

“He was the apprentice, and it was normal for him to be beaten by Michael. Then, at the end of the year, he was beating him on merit in qualifying—not in races, but he beat him in some races by chance.”

“I think we’re in a similar situation with Charles. If Charles isn’t the one pulling away, it’s a win-win situation, isn’t it? You have this seven-time world champion, a guy who can learn from him and eventually become a true champion himself.”

“At that point, Lewis is ready to retire and exit stage left, and now you have this fully formed world champion who is going to be a winning machine.”