Sebastian Vettel reveals “the only advice” he gave Lewis Hamilton ahead of Ferrari move

Sebastian Vettel has detailed the key piece of advice he gave Lewis Hamilton ahead of his switch to Ferrari this year.

Hamilton shocked the sporting world by deciding to leave Mercedes for Ferrari for the 2025 F1 season.

The seven-time world champion’s move brought with it an unprecedented amount of hype and expectations.

Ferrari had just narrowly missed out on the 2024 F1 constructors’ championship, losing out to McLaren.

Hamilton was joining Ferrari on the back of his worst season in F1, even though he clinched two victories.

Neither party has lived up to expectations, with the SF-25 falling well short of being a car capable of challenging for regular race victories.

Hamilton has struggled with the acclimatisation process at Ferrari.

While he has often been a closer match to Charles Leclerc since the summer break, execution in crucial moments remains a key issue.

Hamilton qualified 20th at the Las Vegas Grand Prix following another difficult session.

He recovered to finish eighth in the race, moving up two places due to McLaren’s double disqualification.

However, Hamilton has continued to cut a frustrated figure, leading to recurring questions about his F1 future.

With the new technical rules coming into play in 2026, it should give Hamilton a fresh start.

Vettel’s advice for Hamilton

Vettel made the switch to Ferrari after years of success at Red Bull in 2015.

The German’s first year at Maranello was arguably his best, winning three races and running Nico Rosberg close for second in the championship.

Ferrari produced race-winning cars in 2017 and 2018, resulting in title battles with Hamilton.

Poor in-season car development in both seasons, combined with operational and driver mistakes, meant Hamilton beat Vettel to both titles.

Reflecting on his own move to Ferrari, Vettel wishes that he had learned Italian better – and that’s the advice he gave to Hamilton.

“The move to Ferrari, for sure it’s going to be a huge difference,” Vettel said on the Beyond the Grid podcast. “The heart and culture of the team is Italian. The language is English.

“He understands everybody in the team, but there are also employees that he doesn’t understand because they don’t speak English or they don’t speak English very well. If you don’t speak a language very well, you get along, but do you really get the people? Do you get the culture?

“That’s a crucial mistake that I made, looking back. I learned Italian, I took classes, I got along and I understood, but I wasn’t perfect. I should have really studied Italian more, maybe spent more time in Italy to understand the culture more.

“The culture is also the people. I told Lewis when he made the move, ‘The only advice I can give you, the best advice, is learn the language, learn it really, really well.’”