Lewis Hamilton does not yet have a flying start with the W15 in 2024, but he already knows that he can take a seat in a Ferrari next season. Günther Steiner, known as a former team boss of Haas and now active as a team boss, sees parallels with Hamilton’s departure from McLaren at the end of 2012.
“It looks like he made the right choice,” said Steiner, speaking to British Sky Sports F1. Mercedes experienced the worst start to the season in the past decade. The German manufacturer has taken 26 points, eighteen of which are credited to George Russell. Ferrari, which was three points short of Mercedes in 2023, has started much stronger and is only four points behind champion Red Bull Racing after the success from Melbourne.
Steiner now sees the signs of another good transfer for Hamilton. The Brit has only moved to another team once before. “He also made the right choice when he left McLaren for Mercedes, so who knows, he might be right again here.” That transfer, in 2013, also took place one year before a major rule change, and therefore turned out to be a bull’s eye.
Ferrari as last shelter
“Hamilton has been with the team for eleven years and has won six world titles and built up good relationships,” the former Haas team boss continues. ‘He is now ready for a new challenge in the final phase of his career. It is of course nice if you get the chance to receive that final challenge from Ferrari.’ Hamilton has signed a two-year contract with the Italian team and will face Charles Leclerc in 2025.
Ferrari itself last won a drivers’ title in 2007, with Kimi Räikkönen. Since then, Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel came to the Italian racing team to win the next world title, but they did not succeed. Whether Hamilton will succeed at Ferrari will depend firstly on the internal battle with Leclerc, and the 2026 rules also play a key role in this.
