Eddie Jordan has revealed that there was a lot of surprise among the Mercedes team about the impending departure of Lewis Hamilton. For Jordan himself and David Coulthard, the shock was a lot less, as they saw such a switch coming. Coulthard warns Hamilton about Charles Leclerc. The multiple race winner thinks that the Monegasque is perhaps one of the strongest drivers Hamilton has had as a teammate.
Coulthard kicks off by saying that the news surrounding Hamilton surprised everyone. However, his conversation partner quickly catches up. “It’s absolutely not surprising, don’t be crazy!”, is Jordan’s response in the Formula For Success podcast. The former team boss remembers a conversation with Coulthard last September, when there were already rumors about a possible switch from Hamilton. ‘We both agreed it could happen. So why are we all surprised now?’
While Jordan himself was not surprised about the transfer to Hamilton, the Irishman knows that Mercedes reacted quite shocked to the departure of the seven-time world champion. Jordan spoke to people within Mercedes about the upcoming transfer. ‘Wolff called Peter Bonnington (Hamilton’s racing engineer, ed.) and told him the story. Bono’s response was: Toto, wake up, it’s not April 1. So everyone was in disbelief.’
Coulthard predicts a tough challenge for Hamilton
Coulthard believes that both Hamilton and Ferrari can close their hands with the transfer. Nevertheless, the seven-time world champion must prepare very well for the fight with Charles Leclerc. ‘It is very nice for Formula 1 and it will also give Ferrari a big boost. Nevertheless, I think he will have a huge problem with Leclerc. He is a young and brilliant racing driver. He may not have the championships and experience that Lewis has, but he is truly a champion in the making.”
“Charles is perhaps the fastest driver over one lap,” the former Formula 1 driver continues. Coulthard does not think Hamilton has a chance against Leclerc. Nevertheless, the current Mercedes driver is not getting any younger. ‘Lewis is of course a fantastic racer, but he is almost forty. That doesn’t exactly improve his speed over a lap. In addition, Leclerc is in his best years,” is Coulthard’s conclusion.
