‘Disappointing’ Lewis Hamilton spotted taking a step backwards since Ferrari move that will worry Fred Vasseur

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Lewis Hamilton would have hoped to have added to his tally of 105 Formula 1 victories by now after his move to Ferrari.

There have only been two examples during Lewis Hamilton’s F1 career where he has failed to win any of his first 12 races during a campaign.

In 2022 and 2023, Hamilton hadn’t stood on the top step of the podium for Mercedes, and ended up going through the entirety of both of those campaigns without a win.

It means Hamilton has to find an extra dimension during the second half of this season to avoid questions being asked about his decision to join Ferrari.

George Russell has won a race for the Silver Arrows this year, and rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli has stood on the podium sooner than the seven-time champion he replaced.

Ferrari are bringing a rear suspension update to the Belgian Grand Prix, and Hamilton’s recent form has been far more encouraging.

Unfortunately, Jolyon Palmer believes that Hamilton has struggled in one area this season more than in his final campaign working under Toto Wolff at Mercedes.

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

Jolyon Palmer pinpoints ‘disappointing’ race pace as area of concern for Lewis Hamilton after Ferrari move

Palmer: “You have to say it’s been disappointing, let’s be honest.

“This is Lewis Hamilton with Ferrari, the matchup that we were all hoping was going to be a chance for a title bid, and he doesn’t seem like he’s anywhere near his best right now in harmony with the car.

“He’s not been signed to be a decent number two to Charles Leclerc either.

“This was a big money signing to get Ferrari back on the top step, and they are miles away from it in the big picture here. Obviously, McLaren have got a great car, but Lewis hasn’t been on the podium in Grand Prix conditions yet, so hopefully the trajectory is good, but you can’t say that this has been anything but disappointing at the moment.”

Palmer was then asked if he thinks Hamilton has been better this season than his final year at Mercedes and continued: “It’s difficult to tell, isn’t it, because I personally think it’s been a little bit harder for him this year than last year.

“He’d already had the British Grand Prix win, he was about to get the Belgian Grand Prix win as well and at least the race pace last year looked like it was better even if he was being outqualified by George.

“But then he was much more happy and confident with Mercedes, still he was still working with Bono and all of these teething issues that he had at Ferrari, he was not about to be having in his 11th year with Mercedes, so it’s a difficult comparison.”

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Lewis Hamilton fighting back against Charles Leclerc this season

Charles Leclerc has a 16-point lead over Hamilton in the drivers’ championship at the halfway stage of the season.

In three of the last four races, Hamilton has come out on top in qualifying compared to his teammate, but before the British Grand Prix, the last time he finished ahead of his teammate was at Imola.

Hamilton was expected to struggle against Leclerc over one lap before his move.

The Monegasque driver knows Ferrari far better than Hamilton and has a reputation for being exceptionally fast over one lap.

However, if Hamilton is beginning to lose his edge over Leclerc when it comes to race pace, then that will be a greater concern to team principal Fred Vasseur.

Ferrari’s data suggests they have bigger issues during races due to a tendency to run in dirty air, but Hamilton is still finding it difficult to match Leclerc when the points are handed out during races.