The best of Lewis Hamilton may be behind him but Martin Brundle believes even at “96-97 per cent”, the seven-time World Champion is still good enough to win a title.

After 12 years and six Drivers’ Championship titles with Mercedes, Hamilton has fulfilled a “childhood dream” as he is officially a Ferrari Formula 1 driver.

Lewis Hamilton has ‘lost an edge with age’

The Briton arrived in Maranello on Monday for Day One as a Scuderia driver and spent time getting to know his new colleagues, including his new race engineer Riccardo Adami, and drove the simulator.

But it was Day Three that marked the highlight of his week as he completed his first-ever laps in a Ferrari F1 car, driving the SF-23 at Fiorano as a thousand Tifosi and his family watched on.

It was, the Tifosi hope, the start of a relationship that will result in championship glory as the Scuderia have not won a World title since 2007 with the last Constructors’ title coming a year in 2008.

There have been several near-misses since then with Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel and more recently in 2022 when Charles Leclerc was runner-up to Max Verstappen.

Only time will tell if Hamilton is the one to break Ferrari’s duck.

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Despite being the most successful driver ever in the sport with 105 race wins and seven World titles, the Briton hasn’t had much success in F1’s ground-effect aerodynamic era with only two wins in three years, both achieved last season.

But losing his qualifying head-to-head against George Russell, only his second loss to a team-mate in his 18 years on the grid, even Hamilton said last year that he was “definitely not fast anymore”.

Brundle weighed in on that, but while he concedes Hamilton is not the driver he was in yesteryear, he still feels “96-97 per cent” of Hamilton in the right car is a winning combination.

“Let’s imagine Silverstone last year,” Brundle told Sky F1. “When he had a chance to win the British GP, he won it.

“He won in Spa but that was a little bit lucky because George got disqualified. Lewis was extraordinary all through practice in Las Vegas and then fluffed it in qualifying, something he didn’t used to do much, and then was extraordinary in the race.

“I think the speed is there. Do I think the best of Lewis Hamilton is ahead or behind him? I think it’s behind him.

“I think he’s lost an edge with age, as you do. Sometimes he gets in scuffles that he used to emerge out of, but he doesn’t now, or he’ll make a mistake in qualifying.

“But I think 96-97 per cent of Lewis Hamilton in a winning car is still good enough.

“He’s got all the experience, and his energy and enthusiasm will be re-energised by the whole experience. He will not be overwhelmed driving a Ferrari like so many drivers have.

“And let’s not forget, despite not being a Ferrari driver, the Italian fans, known as the Tifosi, adore him. They cheered him even when he was winning in a Mercedes.”

The Briton believes Hamilton will also be motivated to show the world, and his former Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, that he is not past his sell-by date.

Last year Wolff, speaking to Matt Whyman for his ‘Mercedes F1: Life in the Fast Lane’ book, said of Hamilton’s move to Ferrari: “It avoids the moment where we need to tell the sport’s most iconic driver that we want to stop.

“There’s a reason why we only signed a one-plus-one-year contract. We’re in a sport where cognitive sharpness is extremely important, and I believe everyone has a shelf life.”

Brundle says Hamilton has a point to prove.

“This is only his third team in Formula 1, and he will want to go there and show that, despite just turning 40, he’s not over the hill like some people were saying last year,” he said.

“He wants to show he has made the right decision again, and I think he’ll go there full of energy.”

He added: “I have no doubt that if Ferrari have a race-winning car or a championship-winning car, then Lewis can win races, and even the championship.”

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