Former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley claimed the performance of Lewis Hamilton “clearly disappeared” at Mercedes in 2024, not through loss of talent, but through potentially the “specific” requirements of the current Formula 1 cars.
is heading to Ferrari to replace Williams-bound Carlos Sainz in 2025, but despite a hefty qualifying head-to-head defeat to George Russell in 2024, the two drivers earned two wins apiece and were separated by 22 points come season’s end, in Russell’s favour.
Lewis Hamilton performance ‘disappeared’ theory amid ‘specific’ car requirements
Hamilton won two races in 2024, his first victories since the 2021 season, but found himself outqualified 19-5 in the season head-to-head by Russell as the year progressed.
was announced before the season began, with Sainz going on to take multiple victories himself for Ferrari before he headed to Williams.
Priestley believes it was a standout year for Sainz, but explained his belief that the current generation of cars may not exactly suit the seven-time World Champion’s driving style.
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“It’s hard though because through no fault of his own, he’s not been dropped because of his performances, he got dropped purely because they [Ferrari] had an opportunity to sign a seven-time World Champion and you get that and understand it.
“I think fans will look at the decision at Ferrari and they’ll say ‘Look at Lewis’ performances right now, and then look at Carlos’ performance right now, they’ve made a terrible mistake at Ferrari and they should’ve stuck with Carlos.’
Analysis: Lewis Hamilton joins Ferrari from Mercedes for F1 2025
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“And to some extent, in terms of the longer performance of Ferrari, Carlos has got a bit more longevity in him than Lewis has. I think we can all agree on that.
“But Lewis’ performance this year in the Mercedes has clearly disappeared, and it’s clearly disappeared even in comparison to his own team-mate particularly in qualifying. He just cannot match him.
“I’ve always had this theory about Formula 1 drivers and I can probably apply it to Daniel Ricciardo in recent times, maybe even Sergio Perez in the Red Bull which we know is a good car – they’re so specific, modern Formula 1 cars, in terms of how they need to be driven.
“Particularly this new generation of cars, is it just a case that a certain type of car’s characteristic doesn’t suit a particular driver’s driving style, and some of them find it hard to adapt to that.
“It’s not like Lewis has lost talent, just is it this particular car doesn’t suit the way that he drives?”
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