Toto Wolff speaks out as Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari boss get into disagreement
Ferrari star Lewis Hamilton and boss Frederic Vasseur appear to be butting heads, but Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has faith in his former driver.
Mercedes supremo Toto Wolff is confident Lewis Hamilton can turn his season around, even if the seven-time world champion isn't on the same page as his new boss. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur is adamant both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc need to focus less on upgrading their cars and more on squeezing the most out of their current drives.
The Italian manfucaturer had a fairly forgettable weekend at the Canadian Grand Prix, where Leclerc finished fifth while Hamilton took sixth after hitting a groundhog on the 13th lap. As it goes, those also happen to be the Ferrari duo's current positions in the drivers' standings, but Hamilton's former boss called for calm as he gets to grips in his new surroundings. "Changing teams is not enough to unlearn how to drive," said Wolff on Bloomberg's Hot Pursuit podcast. "We all need a period of adaptation. Lewis drives a different car and works with a new team of engineers, without forgetting that it is an entirely Italian team. All this takes time."
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There is optimism for Ferrari that some technical tweaks in the second half of the campaign could yield significant improvements. And Wolff went on to suggest that's when Hamilton tends to come into his own. "Usually, at the beginning of the season, Lewis has to find his rhythm," he continued.
"While in the second part he has always done very well. So I would not exclude him from the protagonists." The Briton is banking on that being the case if he's to salvage much pride from the current season.
Even with the change of employer, it would be fair to call 2025 a major disappointment to date by his usual standards, having yet to even pick up a podium in Ferrari colours. And Hamilton is adamant changes to the car are required if they are to be truly competitive.
Even if team principal Vasseur is more uniquely focused on the team's approach to race weekends being the real issue at hand. The F1 icon told reporters in Canada he is "constantly battling the engineers" to try and improve the SF-25's performance.
In no uncertain terms, Hamilton stressed: "Ultimately we need upgrades. We need an upgrade to be able to fight the guys up front."
That's in direct contrast to the opinions of Vasseur, whose job security has once again come in for scrutiny of late. And while the Frenchman acknowledges upgrades are on the horizon, he prefers to focus on what his drivers can do with the current model.
"We will have an upgrade soon, before the UK. And perhaps another one a bit later," he said after Montreal. "But honestly today, I think there is much more in the execution and what you are getting from the car than the potential of the car itself."
Vasseur continued: "Honestly, I want to put the focus much more on the execution than the pure potential of the car. But we will bring something."
That last comment in particular will be music to the ears of Hamilton and Leclerc as they strive to chase down the rest of the pack in front. But it hints at a serious sense of disharmony among the main players in Maranello.
