Since joining Ferrari at the beginning of the season, Lewis Hamilton has struggled to find form in the scarlet red car. The seven-time world champion is yet to stand on the podium this season and has lacked pace compared to his teammate Charles Leclerc.
Hamilton arrives at the Dutch GP with a 42-point deficit to his teammate as the Brit lacks confidence in the SF-25. Ferrari hasn’t given its drivers the car to regularly fight for wins, but Leclerc has still managed to finish in the top three on five occasions. However, Hamilton’s one-time rival, Fernando Alonso, has defended the 40-year-old, who predicts Hamilton will bounce back.
Fernando Alonso backs Lewis Hamilton to thrive at Ferrari
The Dutch GP comes straight after the four-week summer break, giving the drivers a chance to hit the reset button and restart their campaign. Lewis Hamilton needed this break after he was disappointed after a tough Hungarian GP. The season has had many setbacks for Hamilton as he looks to adapt to working in Maranello. His former McLaren teammate, Fernando Alonso, thinks Hamilton will find the pace to compete.
Speaking to the media before the Dutch GP, Alonso said, “I think from the outside you never know for sure what is going on, but Lewis doesn’t need to prove anything. He’s an incredible driver and he will figure out sooner or later to be at the top pace.
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“He and Ferrari will always be a combo that you need to respect a lot.”
Alonso drove with Hamilton in the 2007 season and had a stint at Ferrari between 2010 and 2014. He knows how Hamilton works and the ingredients needed to have success with the Scuderia. Alonso backing Hamilton should be the vote of confidence the Brit needs to get his Ferrari career up and running.
Lewis Hamilton needs to bounce back at the Dutch GP
Lewis Hamilton has had disappointing races in his last two outings in Belgium and Hungary. Hamilton recorded only six points from both races and was questioning whether he was the right man to drive for Ferrari. The 40-year-old declared he was “useless” and suggested that Ferrari should replace him.
Hamilton is yet to adapt to the way the SF-25 drives. The seven-time world champion has also struggled to acclimatise to his new environment in Maranello. Having spent the last 12 years of his career with Mercedes, this was never going to be easy, but the 105-time race winner needs to bounce back.
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Hamilton’s major issue has been qualifying this season. He is yet to put his Ferrari in the top 3, unlike his teammate. With it being so difficult to overtake this season, Hamilton has been unable to progress up the grid during the races to step on the rostrum.
There have been flashes of Hamilton’s pace when he recovered to finish in P4 after starting twelfth in Imola. He also recovered from a pit lane start in Belgium to cross the line in P7. However, if he can get his qualifying pace right at Zandvoort, a track notoriously hard to overtake at, he could be on for a confidence-boosting good result.
