Former Minardi F1 team boss Gian Carlo Minardi does not think Lewis Hamilton can do much for Ferrari once the British driver starts driving for the Italian team in 2025. Minardi believes that Hamilton can do little more than bring in some valuable staff for the Scuderia. Carlos Sainz, on the other hand, is underestimated, according to the Italian.
So far, 2024 is not the start to the F1 season that Hamilton had hoped for. His Mercedes team does not seem to have taken the step forward that Ferrari was able to take during the winter break and is therefore not participating in the battle at the top of the Formula 1 field. In addition, Hamilton also seems to be a size too small for teammate George Russell so far, because the young Brit has already managed to qualify three times better than the seven-time world champion. Many experts therefore think that Ferrari may have made the wrong choice to add Hamilton to their team in 2025, especially after Carlos Sainz’s impressive victory in Melbourne.
One of Hamilton’s critics is Minardi, who had taken a completely different approach to his driver duo. “All my life I have preferred young drivers,” Minardi said in an interview with Italian publication Corriere dello Sport. “The only thing Hamilton can do is bring in some valuable engineers.”
‘Sainz can aspire to the world championship’
While the former F1 team boss puts Hamilton down, he has positive words for Sainz. Minardi believes that the Spaniard is very underestimated as a Formula 1 driver. “It is not fair that Sainz is not recognized as a natural talent like Leclerc, because he has innate talents,” Minardi said. ‘He has nothing to envy from the best and is one of the six drivers who can aspire to the world championship with the right car, namely Verstappen, Leclerc, Sainz, Norris, Piastri and Russell.’
