Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone made a bizarre suggestion following Lewis Hamilton’s poor performance at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The 94-year-old thinks it’s time for Hamilton to retire and move on to a life outside of motorsport.
Hamilton qualified and finished P12 at Hungary, which has been one of his best circuits during his career. He’s won at the Hungaroring eight times, but he wasn’t able to score a single point in his first time there with Ferrari.
Bernie Ecclestone thinks Lewis Hamilton should retire
After the Hungarian Grand Prix, Ecclestone was quick to fire shots at Hamilton. He thinks the 40-year-old should retire, because the only place for him to go is down.
“Lewis is very talented, was and probably still is,” he told Mail Sport from Portugal. “But like a lot of leading sports personalities, when they reach the top, there is only one way to go, and it’s not a good direction. It’s only down. They get tired. Lewis is tired.
“He’s been doing what he is doing forever. He needs a rest from it for good, a total reset to do something completely different. He may not think it but he will soon get used to doing other stuff away from motor racing in retirement. I think he should have done it a while ago. The guy is not a cheat. But he would be cheating himself if he goes on.”
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Ecclestone said if he were the one advising Hamilton, he’d tell him to get out right now. He’d negotiate with Ferrari, get his contract paid in full, and get him away from Formula 1.
“If I were looking after him I would negotiate with Ferrari immediately and say, ‘If you have someone to replace Lewis, he’ll step aside’… They signed him because they thought he could do a job. It isn’t working so I can I can make way if you want me to, but that’s the arrangement.”
While Hamilton himself suggested Ferrari may want to find another driver, fans don’t think he meant it. He knows he’s still got a lot left in the tank and can deliver a good result. He just needs to find confidence in his new team and car.
Ecclestone suggests Ferrari targets two talented rookies
In his interview with the Daily Mail, Ecclestone suggested two potential replacements for Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari.
The first of which was Isack Hadjar. The Racing Bulls star has been one of, if not the best rookie this season. He’s completely exceeded expectations thus far and currently sits P13 in the driver’s standings.
The other name Ecclestone suggested was Gabriel Bortoleto, who is coming off a P6 finish in Hungary. The Brazilian has been on the rise recently and just bagged his first major points haul.
Ferrari has the money and power to potentially sway one of these young guys if they were to ditch Hamilton. However, that feels extremely unlikely and just a way for Ecclestone’s to get his name in the headlines.
