Lewis Hamilton 'not like Carlos Sainz' as Ferrari admit they underestimated switch

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur has admitted they “underestimated” the challenge of Lewis Hamilton switching F1 teams.

Hamilton has struggled for form in his opening season at Ferrari.

The seven-time world champion has finished no higher than fourth in a grand prix.

Hamilton’s confidence has taken a significant knock after two difficult races before the summer break.

The 40-year-old was knocked out in SQ1 at Spa-Francorchamps and failed to make it out of Q1 in grand prix qualifying.

It was a similar story in Hungary. 

Hamilton didn’t progress into Q3 this time, while teammate Charles Leclerc stormed to pole position.

Hamilton’s poor qualifying display led to remarkable interviews with Sky Sports.

He described himself as “absolutely useless” after qualifying at the Hungaroring.

After a lacklustre race display, Hamilton hinted that things were going on behind the scenes that he wasn’t happy with.

Hamilton “is not like Carlos Sainz”

Ferrari have now been open in admitting that they “naively thought” Hamilton would hit the ground running at Ferrari.

Carlos Sainz immediately adapted to life at Ferrari in 2021, ultimately beating Leclerc in the championship standings.

Vasseur made the point that Hamilton isn’t like Sainz because the Spaniard has moved teams several times over the years.

Since 2015, Sainz has raced for Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, Ferrari and Williams.

“Looking back, I have to admit that we, by which I mean Lewis and I, underestimated the change to a different environment,” Vasseur said to Auto Motor und Sport.

“He had been with the same team for 18 years, if I can call McLaren and Mercedes home. It was an English team, and the engine environment always remained the same. There is a bigger difference between Ferrari and Mercedes than between Mercedes and McLaren.

“When Lewis arrived at Ferrari, we naively thought that he would have everything under control. He is not like Carlos Sainz, who changes teams every few years and is familiar with the process.”