Lewis Hamilton’s comments on Charles Leclerc in 2019 are now very interesting after becoming Ferrari teammates

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Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur will be confident heading into the 2025 Formula 1 season that he’s got the strongest driver pairing on the grid this year.

Lewis Hamilton has more world championships to his name than every other driver in the paddock combined, and Charles Leclerc will argue he’s the fastest driver in F1 right now without a title to his name.

Ferrari may have a balancing act on their hands keeping both drivers happy if they’ve got a competitive car.

The Scuderia finished second in the Constructors’ Championship in 2024 and it won’t take a huge improvement to leapfrog McLaren given how Vasseur’s team ended last season.

Ferrari have already identified a chronic shortcoming that they plan to fix in 2025 which should aid both of their drivers going forward.

One of the most fascinating aspects of this season will be to see how Hamilton and Leclerc get on as teammates.

Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were close during the Spaniard’s four-year spell with the team but never championship rivals.

The Monagasque’s relationship could end up being much more intense if they’re regularly fighting for wins.

However, what Hamilton said about the 27-year-old during the 2019 F1 season suggests that there’s already plenty of mutual respect between the Ferrari pair.

Lewis Hamilton’s 2019 ‘greatness’ claim about new Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc

After Leclerc’s impressive debut season with Sauber, he was called up to race for Ferrari during the 2019 season.

He scored five podiums in the first half of the season before finally clinching his first win at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Leclerc was joined by Hamilton on the podium and after the race, the Brit said: “He’s been really unlucky in quite a few races this year – it could easily have been the third win today [after missing out in Bahrain and Austria].

“So there’s a lot more greatness to come from him and I’m looking forward to seeing his growth and racing alongside him. It was fun today, trying to chase him. He was just a little bit too quick.”

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Ferrari team principal – and now Audi’s head to Formula 1 – Mattia Binotto added at the time: “He drove very well today, pushing from the first lap to the end, and he drove very well the entire weekend.

“And I think for him as well, it was important to win for Anthoine today, so he was very committed for that. He was willing it, so I’m happy.

“[He’s had] opportunities this season so far, we missed them and to win here in Spa – true it’s not probably the best time, let me say, for our very first victory, but [it’s] an important one as well… the first win for Charles, which is not the last one.

“We heard the [national anthem] of Monaco for the very first time here and we need to learn it, I’m pretty sure.”

Ferrari already putting plans in place for Lewis Hamilton’s first F1 tests

Ferrari face a problem keeping Hamilton’s pre-season work secret due to the heightened interest from fans, particularly around the team’s test track at Fiorano.

Hamilton will begin working in Ferrari’s simulator before he starts testing, with rules dictating that he’s only able to do 1000 km of driving outside of official F1 tests.

This puts him on the back foot compared to Leclerc who may not know the 2025 car but knows Ferrari’s processes and the intricacies of the team much better than his new teammate.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family

Hamilton could take part in three tests before he reaches Bahrain for 1.5 days of official running alongside the rest of the grid.

Ferrari will want Hamilton and Leclerc to provide as much feedback as possible to help them go one step further and win their first title since 2008.

Both drivers know they face one of the toughest intra-team battles of their F1 careers, but Leclerc has seen off an F1 champion before and could establish himself among the sport’s greats if he can do it again.