Lewis Hamilton “lost” and “stuck in a hole” after tough start to Ferrari F1 career

Former F1 driver Johnny Herbert says Lewis Hamilton looks “really lost” and “stuck in a hole” following his tough start to his Ferrari career.

Hamilton’s form has been underwhelming since switching from Mercedes to Ferrari for the 2025 F1 season.

Charles Leclerc has finished on the podium on three occasions in 2025, while Hamilton has yet to finish in the top three.

While Hamilton won the sprint race in Shanghai from pole position, he’s generally struggled.

Speaking to InstantWithdrawalBettingSites, Herbert explained why he thinks Hamilton is “lost”. 

“It just looks like Lewis Hamilton is lost, really lost,” Herbert said. “I don’t know if the raw pace that he’s always had throughout his career is there anymore. I thought, with the pure racing skill Hamilton had, he’d be able to drive around any problems with the car but he seems stuck in a hole.

“It’s not nice to see. It’s not the first time we’ve seen it in the sport, though. Nigel Mansell won his championship in 1992, went to America in 1993, came back in 1994 and it didn’t work anymore for him. It happened with Michael Schumacher too, when he had his break and came back, then he wasn’t the same Schumacher as before.

“You’re always going to have your peak and an end of your peak. It’s not nice to see. I know Charles Leclerc is not happy with the car either, but at least he’s getting podium finishes consistently.

“There have been a couple of poor decisions in Ferrari’s strategy and poor communication over the radio, Hamiltondoesn’t have the synergy with his engineer that he needs. He hasn’t found his comfort zone since the sprint win in China.”

Ferrari “can’t rely” on Hamilton

With Leclerc taking a lead on-track – and even off it by sacrificing qualifying in Spain for a better race result, Herbert feels the team will naturally side with the Monegasque

Herbert added: “Sometimes you don’t realise when it’s not as easy as it was before, but when you look across the garage and your teammate is outperforming you, then it may click. The greats of the sport, at their peak, get the best out of their car. Max Verstappen is doing it right now. Hamilton just can’t seem to get the extra he needs anymore. He won’t understand why he can’t, because he’ll feel like he should be able to. But, Leclerc is outperforming you in the same car.

“Leclerc is only going to grow and is in control of Ferrari’s future. He’s the guy they can rely on, Ferrari can’t rely on Lewis Hamilton at this point. It’s horrible to say but it’s the truth.”