Ten drivers have new homes on the Formula 1 grid in 2025 after half the field moved teams, but one squad have now been told they signed a racer who is ‘past his peak’.
Veterans and rookies alike played musical chairs to set the grid for the 2025 F1 season, with only McLaren and Aston Martin retaining their line-ups. Sauber and Haas even have entirely new line-ups after deciding to replace each of their previous pilots after the 2024 campaign.
The changes kept coming after the racing stopped in Abu Dhabi, too, as Red Bull fired Sergio Perez and promoted Liam Lawson. Placing the Kiwi beside Max Verstappen also allowed the Class of 2025 to add another rookie with Isack Hadjar making his F1 debut with Racing Bulls.
Ferrari have signed Lewis Hamilton ‘past his peak’
But the headline change for the Class of 2025 was Lewis Hamilton leaving Mercedes and replacing Carlos Sainz at Ferrari on an initial two-year contract. The seven-time F1 champion will partner Charles Leclerc as the Scuderia attempt to win their first drivers’ title since 2007.
His arrival at Maranello has been met with much fanfare with more than 1,000 fans flooding to Fiorano to see Hamilton’s first drive in a Ferrari F1 car. He posted 30 laps of the Scuderia’s test track to start to understand their power unit, having only ever raced Mercedes engines.
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari
Yet Frits van Amersfoort, owner of the Van Amersfoort Racing F2 and F3 teams, feels Ferrari have signed Hamilton ‘past his peak’. So, while the 40-year-old may hold the records for the most wins, podiums and pole positions in F1, his arrival should not be to Leclerc’s detriment.
“I cannot imagine that Lewis’ arrival will be at the expense of Charles,” Van Amersfoort told the Dutch edition of Motorsport.com. “Carlos Sainz was, of course, not a slow guy, either.
“I have to be careful not to make enemies but I believe Lewis is past his peak and Charles is not there yet in my opinion. Although, I have to admit that Charles feels closer than Lewis.”
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will both eye Ferrari’s first drivers’ title since 2007
While Van Amersfoort may feel Hamilton is past his peak, the Briton will believe he has a lot left in the tank to offer Ferrari and be the driver – instead of Leclerc – who delivers their first title since Kimi Raikkonen denied the Stevenage-born ace in his rookie season with McLaren.
Hamilton proved he is still capable of magic drives during his farewell tour with Mercedes in 2024. If the Silver Arrows gave the 105-time Grand Prix winner a car able to fight, he thrived and Hamilton won a record ninth British Grand Prix and flew from P10 up to P2 in Las Vegas.
READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family
Leclerc, though, will also believe he has what it takes to bring success to Maranello if Ferrari have a championship-winning car. The 27-year-old delivered emotional wins in Monaco and at Monza, is also engrained in Ferrari and Leclerc is one of the fastest qualifiers in Formula 1.
What Leclerc and Sainz delivered the Scuderia in 2024 also helped to see that Ferrari are the most valuable F1 team at £3.8bn, marking an increase of £1.35bn from 2023. Hamilton’s last term for Mercedes also took the second-most valuable team’s worth from £2.1bn to £3.1bn.
