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via Reuters

via Reuters

Will Hamilton’s Ferrari move pay off? This is the question on everyone’s mind. The huge sudden shift to Ferrari came as a shock to many as Mercedes was the team that enabled Hamilton to win six out of his seven Drivers Championships. But during the twilight of Hamilton’s career, it looks like he aims to exit through the Ferrari stable.

While the 39-year-old is joining a new team, Ferrari already had their golden boy–Charles Leclerc. Frederic Vasseur will have to manage two-star drivers and questions about whether Lewis Hamilton will get the attention he needs have started to pop up. However, at the F1 Chequered Flag podcast, Jennie Gow, Jolyon Palmer, and Andrew Benson sit down to answer the question of the hour.

Charles Leclerc Vs Lewis Hamilton: Monégasque Golden Boy Vs Veteran World Champion

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Lewis Hamilton will be racing alongside and against teammate Charles Leclerc. Leclerc also has his eyes set on the World Championship. During the F1 Chequered Flag podcast, ex-F1 driver Jolyon Palmer discussed the difficulties that Hamilton might face. Palmer highlighted the challenges Hamilton may encounter while competing against Leclerc. Around 15 minutes into the podcast, answers to the big question about the possible difficulties Lewis might face at Ferrari began to emerge.

 

Palmer started by saying, “Nobody thought it would happen,” while talking about the transfer. “This kind of works for Hamilton and Ferrari,” he added. In the podcast, they spoke about Lewis Hamilton‘s move to Ferrari and Jolyon said, “I think it’s more daunting for Lewis.” 

The 33-year-old added, “He has won 6 championships with them (Mercedes). “But going to Ferrari where Leclerc is the golden boy, and he is so quick ‘Charles’, that that could be a really tough fuss for Hamilton to match Leclerc, I think particularly in qualifying pace.”

The discussions started to pick up as Palmer explained, “He is into the lion’s den up against the lion.” Considering Ferrari has been Leclerc’s home since 2019, Palmer believes “It really really that difficult for him to match Leclerc, if he can do it, that’s immediately a great start for him because, of his race pace and he is not error-prone all these things you can query against Leclerc, that’s where Hamilton’s maturity will help a little bit more.”

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While Leclerc lacks experience of being in F1 for over 15 years, what he has is talent that has gotten him so far.

Ralf Schumacher’s take on Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari

Ralf Schumacher shared some insights with Sky Deutschland on what he thinks will happen with the Hamilton-Ferrari transfer. He told Sky, “When Hamilton is at Ferrari he will try to get number 1 status, but I think he will have to fight for it because of Leclerc’s management.” He spoke about the way things work in Ferrari and stated, “Ferrari has done this before with number 1 status and it wasn’t well received by everyone.”

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Formula One F1 – Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – Jeddah Corniche Circuit, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia – March 16, 2023 Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc ahead of the Grand Prix REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed

But the main point that Ralf emphasized was, “What is more important is: what do the drivers want? Lewis needs a stable car, while Charles can handle a nervous car and it remains to be seen who will prevail.” He discussed more about how the Brit will get the attention he deserves from Vasseur and shared how he was excited about the prospects of the upcoming season.

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That being said, do you think Lewis will have a tough time dealing with Charles Leclerc or will they have a newfound friendship and understanding on the track? Let us know your thoughts on this below.