F1
Ecclestone does not give Hamilton two years at Ferrari: "He won't last long"
© Xavi Bonilla / DPPI
The arrival of Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari : while some assiduously follow each of the Briton's steps within his new team, others are much less enthusiastic... and this is notably the case of Bernie Ecclestone. The former great treasurer of the Formula 1 never minces his words, as is well known, and regularly shares very strong opinions.
In his last interview with British newspaper The Telegraph – where he states in particular that the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States "is the best thing that could happen in the world" – Mr.E assures that the integration of the Briton into the Scuderia will be a failure, and that the seven-time world champion will not last until the end of his contract, scheduled for the end of 2026. "He won't last long. Piero Ferrari, who took him there, still thinks they made the right choice," Bernie Ecclestone said. "I hope that's the case. I hope they didn't just take the plunge and end up regretting it later."
According to Bernie Ecclestone, Lewis Hamilton arrives at Ferrari in a bad context: if the Scuderia has been on an upward slope since the arrival of Frédéric Vasseur at its head, the 94-year-old businessman considers that the Italian team already has its number 1 driver with Charles Leclerc and that Ferrari will have a much easier time working with the Monegasque than with the Briton. "I don't think Lewis will get the same attention at Ferrari. First of all, the team is happy with Charles Leclerc, his team-mate. Leclerc speaks their language, so they will look after him. Even if Lewis does well, he will still have a lot of enemies, because he arrived suddenly."
Ecclestone doubts Hamilton's motivation
Furthermore, the former Formula 1 boss has not been really impressed by the level displayed by the seven-time world champion in recent years, especially since the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix where he lost his eighth title on the last lap to Max Verstappen. In the last three seasons, Lewis Hamilton has only won two Grands Prix. At 40, will he still have the motivation and the ability to go for this eighth crown? Bernie Ecclestone doubts it. “I have my theory about it: it’s not the age of the drivers that matters, it’s the time they’ve spent doing the same thing. With Lewis, I thought he was tired, he was no longer motivated. He lost his motivation. If he had never won a world championship, maybe it would be different, because then there would be motivation to win one. But he’s won seven…”
This is not the first time that Bernie Ecclestone has directly opposed Lewis Hamilton: in 2020, in the midst of the "Black Lives Matter" movement, Bernie Ecclestone sparked outrage by claiming that "Black people are more racist than white people", to which Lewis Hamilton responded by calling the businessman's remarks "ignorant and uneducated comment". Between Ecclestone and Hamilton, it’s hard to be more contradictory…
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Dorian Grangier
A young journalist nostalgic for the motorsport of yesteryear. Raised on the exploits of Sébastien Loeb and Fernando Alonso.
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vincent moyet
10/02/2025 at 11:58 a.m.
The last World Cup with Ferrari didn't even talk about it at all...so maybe no one noticed anything.
Jacques Morin
10/02/2025 at 06:58 a.m.
We'll have to go back to the Ehpad Bernie... Sophie you're right ;-) Besides the last World Champion with Ferrari didn't speak Italian...
eric stevens
09/02/2025 at 10:54 a.m.
full of clairvoyance bernie and even if some think that it will work, it will not! we will see that in 6 months! in any case the goal of the story is not to win, that would be a bonus, but to sell lots of caps! ferrari earns a lot with ready-to-wear! that said, it can quickly become counterproductive when we see the behavior of the tifosis in football with people of color who do not win..
vincent moyet
09/02/2025 at 04:07 a.m.
Yes, to integrate at Ferrari or in Italy, you have to be convinced (and say it in Italian!) that Ferrari is the greatest team of all time, that Gilles Villeneuve is a God, that Monza is the only true temple of speed, that Juve is the greatest club in the world, that nothing beats Italian cuisine, etc. Otherwise you remain a foreigner seen with a certain condescension. The problem is that English being the international language in F1, I'm not sure that Hamilton anticipated learning the language (or even considering any foreign language since his own is enough...) and thinks that it is important, if he has not immersed himself in Italian culture. It will indeed be crucial. You don't integrate the family otherwise you don't make efforts towards it.
Sophie Dubourg
09/02/2025 at 02:51 a.m.
The dogs bark...The caravan passes...
Rovela
09/02/2025 at 02:21 a.m.
You write anything, the other pilots do not speak any other language than English.
Yves-Henri RANDIER
09/02/2025 at 01:35 a.m.
We know the very clear but also ill-informed opinions of Mister E, ex-Supremo of F1, who did not see the aging of the fans coming and did not know how to take the turn of social networks and streaming for the rejuvenation of the clientele. Obviously, if Sir Gold Lives Matter does not take the trouble to learn the language of Dante, Bernie could well be right especially if the start of the 2025 season clearly turns to the advantage of the Monegasque!
Hilton Leon
09/02/2025 at 12:39 a.m.
The VASSEUR/HAMILTON tandem is a winning team.
Lucas Paul
09/02/2025 at 12:05 a.m.
His master voice, as my friend would say! Bernie is absolutely right, Lewis won't make it, as important as Bernie says, he doesn't speak or understand Italian, second language for Charles......that counts for a lot, and we know that Lewis is bad at any language other than English!!! And that he won't make any effort to try to say a few words, or even a very small sentence! That's how it is, that we can't be and have been, that's the century of life :):):)