Lewis Hamilton looked “completely out of his depth” on his Ferrari debut and not on the pace of team-mate Charles Leclerc.

That is the claim put forward by former F1 driver Christian Danner, who urged that it is up to Hamilton to “adapt” to Ferrari, not the other way around.

Lewis Hamilton Ferrari debut: ‘Completely out of his depth’?

Hamilton made the blockbuster move from Mercedes to Ferrari for F1 2025, a move a year in the making having activated a release clause in his Mercedes contract before the 2024 season got underway to secure that future move to Maranello.

Hamilton’s big Ferrari debut finally arrived at the Australian Grand Prix, which turned into a rather low-key outing for the seven-time World Champion who qualified P8 and finished P10, while Leclerc crossed the line P8.

“What we saw in Melbourne was shocking,” Danner said on Hamilton when speaking to Motorsport-Magazin.com.

“My impression was that Hamilton was simply completely out of his depth.”

As proof, Danner pointed to a last-lap overtake on Hamilton from McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, recovering after spinning out of P2 as the rain returned at Albert Park.

Piastri would go around the outside of Hamilton into Turn 11 – the start of the high-speed chicane – completing the move as that became the inside line of Turn 12.

“An overtaking manoeuvre like Piastri’s towards the end of the race – something like that would never have happened to Hamilton in the past,” Danner claimed. “He let himself be duped.

“What we saw in Melbourne is a confirmation of the test. Hamilton is slower than Leclerc.”

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Hamilton made a point of still getting “acclimatised” to the Ferrari engine, settings, and driving style required, having suggested earlier in the Australian GP race weekend that he would need to adapt his own driving style to get the best out of the SF-25.

However, Danner sees a problem there for Hamilton.

Suggesting that the Ferrari “doesn’t do” what Hamilton “wants”, and is instead “either too aggressive, has too much understeer or is too nervous on the rear axle when turning in”, Danner added: “You can adjust the driving style in nuances, but certainly not for things you can see from the outside.

“A car steers or pushes over the front axle – you can do whatever you want with your driving style.”

All in all, Danner tells Hamilton: “When you’ve worked in an English system for decades and come out of it, it takes a really long time to internalise the other system, in this case the Ferrari system.

“Hamilton has to get to grips with the Ferrari system and not let Ferrari adapt to Hamilton.”

Speaking with DAZN F1 after the race, Hamilton made his difficulties encountered quite clear, admitting he has “to work more” to get to grips with the Ferrari SF-25.

“It was one of the most difficult races I can remember,” he said. “I had a very tricky balance and keeping the car on track was tricky. Just very twitchy all the way around.

“They were saying it was going to rain for a very short time during one lap. I kept my cool on track and took the lead when everyone else came in…. That was good, leading with Ferrari.

“I learned a lot from the car today. It wasn’t a happy car today, that’s for sure. We’ve got a lot of work to do to get it into the window.

“I’m glad I didn’t have an accident or go off. But I didn’t have the pace or the grip either. There was a moment when I think I was P3 and we couldn’t capitalise on that opportunity and it is definitely a shame.

“The most difficult thing has been all the checks, all the procedures and finding the key from the beginning. The balance has been very very complicated, one of the most complicated I’ve encountered in the last few years. I have to work more to find the right set-up.”

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