Martin Brundle believes Lewis Hamilton is potentially past his “absolute peak” as he joins Ferrari, but explained why this does not mean his threat has diminished.
Having activated a release clause in his Mercedes contract last winter to seal an F1 2025 move to Ferrari, Hamilton endured quite the emotional rollercoaster in his final season with Mercedes, from highs such as returning to the top step of the podium on home soil at Silverstone, to lows like Qatar where he declared “I’m definitely not fast anymore”.
Martin Brundle warns of ’98 per cent’ Lewis Hamilton threat
That Hamilton admission came after a fresh one-lap defeat to then Mercedes team-mate George Russell, who recorded a 19-5 victory over Hamilton in their F1 2024 qualifying head-to-head battle.
This has sparked debate over whether Ferrari has made the right decision in swapping out Carlos Sainz for Hamilton – who turns 40 ahead of his Ferrari debut – with the seven-time World Champion to go up against Charles Leclerc, regarded as one of the fastest drivers anywhere on the F1 grid over one lap.
And speaking after the F1 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi – Hamilton recovering from a Q1 exit to finish P4 – former racer turned Sky F1 pundit Martin Brundle offered his thoughts on the discussion about whether Hamilton is past his prime.
“Tremendous drive, a bit like Las Vegas as well, wasn’t it, where he came back through the field and just showed a lot of pace, a lot of determination,” Brundle began.
“Plenty of people [are saying], ‘Is Lewis over the hill?’ Is his peak ahead of him or behind him? His absolute peak, it might be behind him as he turns 40 in January.”
However, while the likes of former F1 team boss Eddie Jordan have been highly vocal about Ferrari’s decision to sign Hamilton, Jordan going as far as to suggest chairman John Elkann “must have rocks in his head” to have sanctioned the Hamilton deal, Brundle still sees on-track value in Ferrari’s acquisition.
Hamilton is the most successful driver in Formula 1 history with a record-equalling seven World titles, while he also holds outright benchmarks such as most grand prix wins (105), poles (104) and podiums (202).
“But, 98 per cent of Lewis Hamilton in a race-winning Ferrari will win races,” Brundle warns, “and maybe, you know, he’ll get some new energy there as well.
“So he showed today that there’s still a lot to come from Lewis Hamilton at the wheel of a Formula 1 car.”
Hamilton’s Mercedes replacement is their 18-year-old prodigy Kimi Antonelli, who steps up to an F1 2025 seat after his rookie campaign in Formula 2.