'Hamilton with Ferrari has the potential to drive at Verstappen's level'

F1 News

villeneuve thinks hamilton at ferrari as good as verstappen
18 August at 07:00
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  • Ludo van Denderen

Lewis Hamilton is a man in form. Out of the last three Grands Prix before the summer break, the former world champion won two and came third once. The Mercedes he is currently driving has slowly developed into an equivalent car to that of Red Bull Racing and McLaren also seems to be in sight. Ferrari - the team Hamilton will race for next season - are behind Mercedes. Still, Jacques Villeneuve believes Hamilton will be capable of great things at the Scuderia.

Villeneuve, himself a single world champion, expects Hamilton to have the opportunity at the Italian team to realise his big dream: an eighth world title. "Lewis Hamilton can definitely win a championship at Ferrari," the Canadian told Instant Casino. "That team might have the last step that he’s missing at Mercedes to win him another title."

According to Villeneuve, this would require Hamilton to perform at top level more than a few times a year. If he can do that, he could rival his biggest rival Max Verstappen. "At Ferrari, he will have the potential to drive how Max Verstappen does now, and it might boost his mental focus throughout a season as it’s a fresh challenge. It would cement his place in history."

'Hamilton and Mercedes were looking for reason to part ways'

Hamilton will not regret his move to Ferrari, Villeneuve believes - despite Mercedes' resurgence. "No, Lewis Hamilton needed a change anyway," says the Canadian, indicating that the Briton did not figure in Mercedes' future plans. "Both sides were waiting for an excuse to go their separate ways, without it being a fight."

This article was written in collaboration with Kada Sarkozi