Ever since the move of Lewis Hamilton to Ferrari F1 was announced in February 2024, many have been curious about the thoughts of Carlos Sainz and how he expects the seven-time World Champion to do.
A case of wait and see how he gets on
When posed the question of how successful Hamilton will be against former teammate Charles Leclerc at Ferrari F1, Sainz was unsure about how well the seven-time Formula One drivers’ champion will go.
The Spanish driver further elaborated that he has never directly seen Hamilton’s data, so could not exactly comment on how the move will play out.
Nonetheless, Sainz is aware of how quick and strong Charles Leclerc is.
“Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve never been teammates with Lewis, so I don’t know what he’s capable of doing.
“I’ve never seen his data. I’ve seen Charles and I know how good Charles is, but I’ve never been teammates with Lewis.
“And the only way you can more or less evaluate purely a driver is when you’re their teammate and you see what they’re capable of doing.”
Hamilton could be competitive
Sainz states how there is a natural chance that the British driver will experience success with the Italian outfit. It would be foolish to write off a driver who has won seven Drivers’ Championships, and taken 105 race wins.
However, he admits the success of the former Mercedes will be affected by how he is adapting to the numerous variables he is facing at the Scuderia.
“I can only say there’s a very high chance that obviously he’s going to be competitive in Ferrari.
“But like everything, it will all depend on how well you can adapt to a car, how well you can adapt to a team, in which moment is your teammate in. It’s so many variables that it’s impossible for me to predict.”
Hamilton and Ferrari partnership has potential
The 30-year-old goes on to comment that the Maranello-based team are in a prime position to challenge for championships after he left at the end of 2024. They missed out on the Constructors’ Championship to McLaren by 14 points in Abu Dhabi last year.
He also states that Hamilton’s move will only increase this potential chance of Ferrari tasting success again. Kimi Räikkönen was Ferrari’s last Drivers’ World Champion in 2007.
“But I can only say when I left Ferrari, I did feel the team, both Ferrari and Charles, were ready to fight for a World Championship.
“And with Lewis joining, that chance is only going to increase.”
