Bernie Ecclestone rips into Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari

Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has launched his latest scratching attack on Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari.

95-year-old Ecclestone, who was in charge of F1 from 1987 until 2017, brutally described Hamilton and Ferrari’s partnership as a “financial marketing project”.

Ecclestone also claimed Hamilton is “one of the best of the last ten years, but he’s not the best.”

Hamilton is enduring a difficult first F1 season with Ferrari since completing a blockbuster switch from Mercedes last winter.

The seven-time world champion is still awaiting his first grand prix podium finish with Ferrari, having set an unwanted new record as a Scuderia driver.

Hamilton has also been outperformed by teammate Charles Leclerc, who is one place and 64 points ahead of the 40-year-old Briton.

According to Ecclestone, Hamilton’s move to Ferrari has been a failure.

“Everything is slipping away from him there,” Ecclestone is quoted as telling sport.de.

“He wanted to become world champion there and is now surprised that he can’t do it.”

It is not the first time Ecclestone has criticised Hamilton throughout his illustrious F1 career.

Ferrari ‘needs a dictator’

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur was also a target of Ecclestone’s latest scrutiny.

Ecclestone said Ferrari “needs a dictator” to return to winning ways amid their continued championship drought.

Despite being the most successful team in F1 history, Ferrari have not won a world championship since 2008.

Vasseur’s future has repeatedly been brought into question during a disappointing 2025 season but the Frenchman was handed a multi-year contract extension in July.

“The problem is that Ferrari needs a dictator at the top to be successful,” Ecclestone added.

“They don’t speak Italian there, they speak Ferrarian. Everyone in Italy has a say and interferes in what is right and wrong.”