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Anthony Davidson has seen proof that Lewis Hamilton’s 2025 struggles were not his fault because he is Formula 1’s greatest of all time.
Ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 season, all eyes were firmly fixated on Hamilton after his high-profile transfer from Mercedes to Ferrari.
At the time, the move was described as a dream pairing between a historic team and a seven-time world champion.
However, Hamilton endured a nightmare debut season, as he struggled to adapt to his new surroundings and the SF-25 also proved to be problematic.
In the end, the Brit finished 86 points adrift of Charles Leclerc and was convincingly beaten by the Monegasque.
So far in 2026, things have improved drastically, with Hamilton securing his first win for Ferrari at the Barcelona Grand Prix last month. Currently, the 41-year-old leads Leclerc by 39 points in the world championship standings.
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Anthony Davidson says Lewis Hamilton simply did not suit the previous generation of F1 cars
Speaking recently on the Sky Sports F1 Show, Davidson claimed that Hamilton’s 2026 form has proved that his 2025 woes were not his fault.
The 47-year-old, who drove for Minardi, BAR and Super Aguri in F1, stated that Hamilton did not suit the previous generation of cars, which was the main reason for his struggles.
Now, with new regulations, Hamilton has again found his speed and is currently getting the better of Leclerc. Davidson went on to label Hamilton as the GOAT.
He explained: “It was the car, it was the car, and now, we can prove it because he changed teams, he had different teammates, the problems from 2022 continued all the way until last year.
“He’s been brilliant in every car he has driven in F1, but it just never quite clicked with the ground effects cars. He didn’t suit the ground effect cars.
“Some drivers can cope with that, some can’t; Lewis has always liked to have the car moving a bit and almost like a go-kart, the rear moving on the entry; I see that Kimi Antonelli is the same; they’ve got a very similar style.
“It’s no coincidence that both of them have just gone from not being able to match their teammate to being ahead of their teammate because the car is so different.”
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Davidson added: “I do think 100% is the car change that has unlocked this speed again. This is the GOAT, this is the GOAT, you know, if the GOAT doesn’t perform, well, it can’t be his skill behind the wheel.
“It has to be another factor that’s stopping him from being able to drive this car, so I think that’s where, for us, a lot of hunting began, trying to find the reasons. For him, a lot of soul-searching was done.”
After nine races, Hamilton is slowly but surely asserting himself into the title race, with just 32 points between himself and Kimi Antonelli.
It has been well documented that Mercedes have the best overall package, having won seven out of nine Grands Prix in 2026.
However, one major problem the Silver Arrows have had to deal with is reliability, with both Antonelli and George Russell suffering race-ending issues.
As a result, with Ferrari proving to be the most reliable car on the grid, Hamilton could be in the perfect position to pick up the pieces if something goes wrong for Mercedes again.
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