The dynamic within Ferrari’s Formula 1 team this season is going to be one of the biggest talking points throughout the campaign.
Charles Leclerc has established himself as one of the fastest drivers on the grid and has come out on top against the likes of Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz.
However, Ferrari hiring Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes presents his toughest challenge yet with the seven-time world champion more motivated than ever to break Michael Schumacher’s record and become an eight-time world champion.
Martin Brundle believes Hamilton is happier than ever and that represents a big change compared to his final few years with the Silver Arrows.
After achieving just two Grand Prix victories in the past three seasons, Hamilton will hope that the SF-25 is much more competitive even if McLaren are the early favourite to win the championship.
Hamilton has unsurprisingly drawn the vast majority of the media’s attention ever since his iconic photoshoot announced his arrival in Maranello.
That puts Leclerc in a different position to last season when he and Sainz very much shared the spotlight given their similar reputations.
Brundle was speaking on The F1 Show ahead of the Australian Grand Prix and shared what he had heard about the Monegasque driver’s feelings towards Hamilton’s arrival.
Martin Brundle explains how Charles Leclerc feels about Lewis Hamilton joining Ferrari
Brundle was talking about how Leclerc will be feeling considering all the noise surrounding Hamilton’s arrival and he said: “Apparently he’s loving it because all of the attention is on Lewis instead of him and the pressure is on him and what he’s got to do in a McLaren [Ferrari].
“He’ll learn from Lewis and I think Charles is very mature, his ego is parked.
“He’ll be very happy for all of the spotlight to be across the garage so he can get on with his job.”
READ MORE: Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend
Brundle was then asked about the teammate dynamic that could play out at Ferrari and explained: “I think they’ll be quite level. Lewis will take a few races just to get fully in touch with the culture at Ferrari, the race strategies and how it all works.
“But, he won’t be overawed by it at all. The problem teams have now and I think McLaren are going to face this as well, especially with Sprint Races and 24 Grand Prix in a season, you’re so far down the line before one of your drivers is mathematically out of championship contention.
“Maybe a less contested George Russell or Max Verstappen might be down the road somewhere.
“I think it’ll be a challenge for those two teams [McLaren and Ferrari] in particular.”
Naomi Schiff admits she’s not ‘envious’ of Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur
Pundit and racing driver Naomi Schiff was with Brundle and it was put to her that Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur faces a tough task managing both drivers this season.
They will both have aspirations to win the title and Schiff explained how that dynamic might play out: “It’s going to be tricky!
“Look, I don’t envy Fred in that position but of course, I think up until you clearly have a driver who’s ahead, who’s clear faster, they’re not going to have to put themselves in that situation.
READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family
“They are lucky enough at McLaren and Ferrari that they have two incredible drivers and I think that’s why it’s so tough to make that decision and why they do really need to wait it out.
“But Charles, he’s in a tricky position to be in. Of course, he handles things very maturely but at the end of the day, this is his home and Lewis is coming in and that’s inevitably going to put some pressure on him.”
Lewis Hamilton must assert his dominance at the start of the 2025 F1 season over Charles Leclerc
There are so many factors that make the upcoming battle between Hamilton and Leclerc so fascinating.
Hamilton admitted he was struggling in qualifying last season which happens to be Leclerc’s biggest strength.
If the Monegasque driver can consistently start ahead of his teammate then Ferrari will struggle not to prioritise him in any sort of championship fight.
Ferrari’s chiefs wanted Hamilton to be number one but it won’t be as straightforward as that from a strategy point of view.
Former F1 driver Romain Grosjean thinks Leclerc will start as Ferrari’s lead driver but eventually Vasseur will have to decide who to back this season.
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