Lewis Hamilton has been totally dominated by Charles Leclerc since the seven-time F1 drivers’ world champion left Mercedes to join Ferrari and realise his childhood dream.
The 40-year-old could not stop pinching himself when Hamilton arrived in Maranello after a storied 12 seasons for the Silver Arrows. But he heads into this week’s Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya without a podium to his name, let alone a win for Ferrari.
His best results for the Scuderia so far have both come in F1 Sprints, after Hamilton won the Shanghai Sprint from pole position and secured third place in the Miami Sprint. The Briton’s best Grand Prix finish came in Ferrari’s backyard, Imola, when Hamilton recovered to fourth.
Nico Rosberg and Ralf Schumacher disagree that Lewis Hamilton’s age is the reason for his problems at Ferrari
Hamilton also registered his worst qualifying performances of the 2025 F1 season to date in Miami and Imola, as the Ferrari ace achieved just P12 at both Grands Prix. But the 104-time polesitter had his best qualifying for Ferrari last time out at the Monaco Grand Prix with P4.
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| Position | Drivers’ Championship | Points |
| 1 |
Oscar Piastri |
161 |
| 2 |
Lando Norris |
158 |
| 3 |
Max Verstappen |
136 |
| 4 |
George Russell |
99 |
| 5 |
Charles Leclerc |
79 |
| 6 |
Lewis Hamilton |
63 |
| 7 |
Andrea Kimi Antonelli |
48 |
False information from race engineer Riccardo Adami meant Hamilton got a grid penalty for the Monaco GP, which demoted him to P7, after impeding Max Verstappen. It was even the seventh time in his first eight rounds for Ferrari that Leclerc has now out-qualified Hamilton.
And while Ralf Schumacher rubbished claims Hamilton’s problems at Ferrari are age-related after the Monaco GP and ties the Briton’s woes to not liking the SF-25, Rosberg feels it is the reason for his ‘ultimate’ deficit to Leclerc. Hamilton has only led Ferrari’s qualifying in China.
“That’s a good question,” Rosberg told Sky Sports F1 (30/05, 12:00). “Just a little bit lacking here and there, especially in ultimate pace in qualifying. Charles is an incredible qualifier, so Lewis has to find a little more there.
“My answer would be even though he’s the greatest of all time, at some point you are going to get a little bit slower, and that’s age-related. And when you’re 40, it’s going to happen sooner rather than later.
“So, the question is whether that age has come. And even a tenth makes a huge difference in this sport, especially when you’re up against one of the greatest from the new generation, which is Charles Leclerc, who’s one of the absolute best qualifiers.”
Charles Leclerc has beaten Lewis Hamilton 7-1 in qualifying ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix
Hamilton lost his first Grand Prix qualifying head-to-head to a teammate in 18 years in 2024, as George Russell dominated his compatriot 18-6 before the 40-year-old joined Ferrari. Yet he already faces losing back-to-back head-to-heads in 2025, as Hamilton trails Leclerc 7-1.
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The Monegasque has even been 0.313 seconds faster than the Briton on average during the qualifying sessions in which Leclerc outpaced Hamilton this term. Hamilton was only 0.094s faster than Leclerc in Shanghai, as the Ferrari pair qualified in P5 and P6 for the Chinese GP.
Leclerc has also finished ahead of Hamilton in seven of their first eight Grands Prix together, including Ferrari’s double disqualification from the Chinese GP. The only time the Briton has led the Scuderia’s hopes was in Imola, as they finished the Emilia Romagna GP in P4 and P6.
