George Russell confident “it will click” for Lewis Hamilton “at one point”
Lewis Hamilton receives support from his former teammate George Leclerc.
George Russell is confident things will start to “click” for Lewis Hamilton at some point, but admitted it’s “not nice” to see his former teammate struggling at Ferrari.
Hamilton’s underwhelming start to life at Ferrari has been a major talking point in the 2025 Formula 1 season, with the seven-time world champion failing to meet the lofty expectations placed on him.
While his victory in the sprint race in China was a major highlight, he has managed just one finish inside the top five in the five grands prix so far.
Mercedes driver Russell said Hamilton is “not enjoying” racing for Ferrari at the moment due to his competitive struggles, but feels he has what it takes to turn things around.
"He's a champion, he's a winner, and he's in a position where he can't achieve that," Russell was quoted by the BBC. "And it's not easy to accept. If he was beaming with a big smile, you'd be questioning why he's beaming with a big smile.
"I've got a lot of respect for him and I like him personally. It's not nice to see somebody who's not enjoying it.
"But why should he be enjoying it? Because for him it's not about the money, it's about the results. And it's not clicking for him at the moment, but I'm sure it will click at one point."
Russell said Hamilton’s slow adaptation to the Ferrari shows how tough it is to succeed in F1.
"Sometimes you can just jump in and it clicks, and it's straightforward," Russell said. "Other times, it doesn't click.
"The second seat at Red Bull [alongside Max Verstappen], why has that never worked out? It's because Formula 1's bloody difficult.
"You know, you're going up against the best drivers in the world and Charles [Leclerc] is one of the best in the world, in a team that he's been for his whole career, in a car that he knows exactly how to get the most out of."
The SF-25 has usually been the third or the fourth-quickest car this year, with even Charles Leclerc bagging just one podium in a Sunday race so far.
However, with 47 points, Leclerc has comprehensively outperformed his teammate Hamilton, who logged just 31 points between Australia and Saudi Arabia.
Russell feels it is important to highlight how impressive the Monegasque driver has been in 2025, even though much of the focus at Ferrari has been on its new star signing Hamilton.
"Charles has also gone a bit under the radar this year," he said. "He's having an immense season. He had a strong race in China with a broken front wing. He had a super-strong race in Bahrain and arguably the safety car stopped him from beating me. He could have had three podiums this season.
"Charles has been doing a mega job and you'd also be questioning Charles if a driver comes in and is on his pace straight away."
