Ferrari “completely lost” as Lewis Hamilton gamble ‘amplifies’ struggles in 2025

1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says Ferrari are “completely lost” following another disappointing weekend at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Ferrari saw their cars finish eighth and ninth in Baku last weekend.

It proved to be another lacklustre showing from Ferrari despite some promising pace in practice, particularly in the hands of Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton was knocked out in Q2 after Ferrari didn’t give him a new set of tyres for the final minutes of the session.

Charles Leclerc binned his Ferrari in Q3 and was put on a sub-optimal strategy.

The focus after the race was Hamilton’s failure to give the position back to Leclerc on the final lap after being ordered to do so.

However, as it was over eighth place, the situation didn’t annoy Leclerc.

Ferrari “completely lost right now”

Ferrari are the only team inside the top four of the constructors’ championship without a race victory in F1 2025.

Leclerc came closest at the Monaco Grand Prix, finishing second.

Similarly, Leclerc ran well at the Hungaroring, having started the race on pole.

Leclerc’s race was ruined as he was forced to back off due to a chassis-related issue.

Speaking to OLBG, Villeneuve explained why Ferrari’s struggles have only been “amplified” by signing Hamilton for this year.

Villeneuve said: “Ferrari are completely lost right now and obviously need some direction,” he said. “Lewis is big there. Both Lewis and Ferrari took a risk by going together because if the team doesn’t go well with the image that Lewis and the attention that Lewis brings to the team, it makes it even bigger.

“Whatever is good or whatever is bad is amplified by having Lewis there. When races go wrong, a season goes wrong, it looks worse than it is and vice versa.

“That’s what Lewis also brings to the table and that’s the gamble Ferrari took and Ferrari has the same effect on the driver. They just compound and double the effect. It’s always been like this with Ferraris. It’s either great or awful to a bigger extent. But when you put Lewis in it, this is even a bigger concept.

“It was the same with Lewis. That’s the thing when you have such a big image. And Ferrari is one of the biggest images. But Lewis is the biggest image as well in the sport globally. So, the effect is huge.

“There’ve been some really really bad Ferrari seasons, but we didn’t notice them as much. But it’s one season. Let’s not forget. Next year it almost starts from zero for everyone.

“So, it could be a perfect beginning for Ferrari next season. They get to the first race, the engine is great, the car is fantastic, and it takes a while for everyone else to catch up. That’s what they must have in their mind right now. I don’t think they’re focusing on the rest of 2025. 2026 is coming.”