Lewis Hamilton submits new Ferrari ‘document’ as ‘internal politics’ battle emerges
Lewis Hamilton is yet to register a podium finish with Ferrari
Lewis Hamilton has submitted a new document to the Ferrari management over recent weeks, it has emerged.
It comes after the seven-time World Champion revealed earlier this year that he is “going the extra mile” and taking a hands-on approach in a bid to make a success of his Ferrari career.
Lewis Hamilton reportedly sends new ‘document’ to Ferrari
Hamilton has endured a disappointing first season with Ferrari following his high-profile move from Mercedes last winter.
The 40-year-old is yet to register a podium finish with his new team and sits sixth in the drivers’ championship ahead of this weekend’s United States Grand Prix, trailing teammate Charles Leclerc by 48 points.
Hamilton revealed at July’s Belgian Grand Prix that he has been sending a series of “documents” to Ferrari over the course of this season in a bid to reverse his fortunes.
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As reported by PlanetF1.com in August, it is believed that Hamilton’s letters relate to proposed changes to the car as well as the team’s working methods, communication between different departments and the execution of race weekends.
A recent report by Italian publication Corriere della Sera has claimed that Hamilton has sent ‘another report to the top management’ to reinforce his calls for changes to the team’s methods and procedures.
The report adds that Hamilton ‘expected to have more influence’ on decisions at Ferrari, but has ‘instead found himself faced with a series of unheard requests and having to battle against internal politics’ in the search for improvements.
The situation has been likened to that of Sebastian Vettel, the four-time world champion who struggled to affect change during his stint at the team between 2015 and 2020.
It emerged in January that Hamilton had sought the advice of Vettel before starting work with Ferrari.
Hamilton pointed to a potential area for improvement for Ferrari at the Singapore Grand Prix earlier this month, claiming he and Leclerc had lost significant tyre temperature by queuing in the pit lane during qualifying.
That, in turn, resulted in the drivers pushing the tyre too hard on the outlap to regain tyre temperature, resulting in them underachieving on their flying laps.
Hamilton said: “Every time we do that, we’re just falling further and further back. It happens every weekend.
“It has [affected us all season], but I don’t know whether or not they [Ferrari] see it so much.
“We’re losing so much temperature – maybe five [or] six degrees, whatever it is.
“It’s still a lot of temperature and it’s really hard to gain that back in the outlap without using the tyre so much, which we ultimately do.
“I think the guys that are on pole, they went out [on track] quicker with less waiting in the pit lane.
“I think that’s an area we can improve on, for sure.”
More on Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari from PlanetF1.com
Speaking at the Belgian Grand Prix in July, Hamilton revealed that his willingness to take a hands-on approach at Ferrari has been driven by his “refusal” to follow in the footsteps of Vettel and Fernando Alonso, established champions who failed to win the title in red.
He told PlanetF1.com and other publications at Spa: “The reason for it is that I see a huge amount of potential within this team. The passion? Nothing comes close to that.
“It is a huge organisation and there’s a lot of moving parts and not all of them are firing on all the cylinders that need to be.
“That’s ultimately why the team’s not had the success that I think it deserves.
“So I feel that it’s my job to challenge absolutely every area, to challenge everybody in the team, particularly the guys that are at the top making the decisions.
“If you look at the team over the last 20 years, they’ve had amazing drivers.
“You’ve had Kimi, you’ve had Fernando, you’ve had Sebastian. All world champions.
“However, they didn’t win a World Champion[ship] with Ferrari. And I refuse for that to be the case with me, so I’m going the extra mile.
“I’ve obviously been very fortunate to have had experiences in two other great teams.
“And whilst things are for sure are going to be different, because there’s a different culture and everything, I think sometimes if you take the same path all the time, you get the same results, so I’m just challenging certain things.
“They’ve been incredibly responsive. We’ve been improving in so many areas, through marketing and everything we’re continuously delivering for sponsors, the way the engineers continue to work.
“There’s lots of work and improvements to be made, but very responsive and I guess ultimately just trying to really, really create allies within the organisation and and get them gee’d up, get them pushing.
“I’m here to win. And I don’t have as much time as this one here [Andrea Kimi Antonelli], so it’s like: It’s crunch time.
“I truly believe in the potential of this team. I really, really believe that they can win multiple World Championships moving forward.
“They already have an amazing legacy, but during my time that’s my sole goal.”
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