Carlos Sainz sees nothing wrong with up to “six complicated months of adaptation” for a driver at a new team, Lewis Hamilton going through that process at Ferrari.

However, Sainz would point out the “risk” is that a driver “never” ends up adapting, as Hamilton strives for a breakthrough following a difficult start to Ferrari life.

Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari: Can the F1 icon adapt?

Hamilton called time on his record-breaking Mercedes association to make the blockbuster switch to Ferrari, but it is a move which thus far is struggling to live up the hype.

Hamilton – seven times a World Champion – has seen team-mate Charles Leclerc score all three of Ferrari’s podium results so far in F1 2025, Hamilton’s China Spint pole and win one of few highlights.

In a deal agreed before the 2024 campaign got underway, Hamilton replaced Sainz at Ferrari, the Spaniard subsequently agreeing a deal with Williams, where he also struggled to hit the ground running, though recent rounds have been more positive, Sainz scoring points in four his last five grands prix.

As a four-time grand prix winner with Ferrari, Sainz, when speaking with Mundo Deportivo, knocked back the idea of feeling “pride” over how Hamilton has struggled at Ferrari since taking his seat, instead saying it is a case of being able to “understand” Hamilton’s situation, having “had to suffer through changing teams five times” and the process of adaptation it brings.

But, while Sainz champions the allowance of time for a driver to adapt after swapping teams, he said the “risk” is that this process of getting up the speed is never successfully completed, as the pressure on Hamilton builds.

“But then the important thing is to end up adapting,” Sainz continued. “I think that’s the important thing.

“You can have five or six complicated months of adaptation, but what matters is to get there, I think, because if you get there, in the end, with the level and talent you have, then you end up showing what you are worth.

“I arrived [at Ferrari] in the middle of 2022 with pole positions at Silverstone, Spa and Austin. And I won a race, and in 2023, so in the end I got to the level I wanted. The important thing is to get there.

“The risk is that you never end up adapting to that team or car, and so far I’m lucky to say that I’ve always ended up adapting to every team.”

F1 2025 driver head-to-heads

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates

Hamilton penned a multi-year deal with Ferrari, one which means he will remain with the team for the huge F1 2026 regulatory reset, when new chassis and engine rules will arrive.

And despite Leclerc establishing superiority over Hamilton thus far, seven-time grand prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya argues that the F1 2026 Ferrari should be “completely focused” on what Hamilton wants.

“I personally think the basis of the car now should be completely focused on Hamilton’s wishes, rather than Leclerc’s,” Montoya told W Radio Colombia.

“In any case, that is the wisest thing to do if they want a competitive car next year.

“Cars based on Leclerc’s preferences may be able to win a race or two in a year, but a world title will not be in it.

“Under Hamilton’s leadership, Ferrari will quickly find more pace, because he always knows exactly what a car needs.”

Hamilton sits P6 in the F1 2025 Drivers’ Championship, a position and 23 points behind Leclerc.

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