Eddie Jordan rules out ‘untoward’ scenario between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc at Ferrari

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Lewis Hamilton’s career has stuttered over the past few seasons since the ground effect regulations were brought in in 2022.

The seven-time world champion has been unable to consistently challenge for race wins, while Max Verstappen dominated in 2022 and last season.

Hamilton has struggled to adapt to the much heavier cars that don’t suit his late-braking style, which has been challenging.

The British driver is leaving Mercedes to join Ferrari for 2025 and partner Charles Leclerc in a formidable line-up at the Italian team.

It may be a culture shock for Hamilton who will drive for a team based outside of England for the first time in his career.

Eddie Jordan told talkSPORT that he is expecting a fair fight next season at Ferrari, and there won’t be any games played between the teammates.

Eddie Jordan expects Lewis Hamilton to get a ‘fair shot’ against Charles Leclerc

Leclerc built the team around him after developing in the academy and pushing Sebastian Vettel out of Ferrari during their stint together in 2019 and 2020.

Since he became the lead driver, the Monegasque has held a slight advantage over Carlos Sainz within the team as they push to match Red Bull and McLaren over a season.

The Ferrari driver has cut out a lot of errors that halted his title challenge in 2022, particularly in qualifying where he is blisteringly fast.

READ MORE: F1 2025 driver line-up with every team’s confirmed entry for the grid

He is superb over a single lap but has stepped over the limit at times, and Leclerc has made costly errors in Monaco and Azerbaijan, which need to be ironed out.

Jordan feels he may have the upper hand over Hamilton in qualifying next season but the former F1 team principal is expecting a fair battle.

He said: “When he goes to Ferrari, well, first of all, he’s got to beat Leclerc. Charles Leclerc is no stooge. Let me please tell you that in a qualifying position, that I will be surprised.

“I will be surprised if Lewis can match him in the qualifying. But who knows? Lewis is a very dark horse. You just never know what you’re going to get.

“But I’d say Ferrari, to be fair, they spent an unbelievable amount of money to get Lewis there. I would say he will get a very fair shot at it. I don’t think there’ll be anything untoward, and we’ll just see what happens.”

Lewis Hamilton may be making a very good career move

Ferrari have improved significantly over the season and are now challenging McLaren for the Constructors’ Championship.

The Italian team have been competitive on a variety of tracks such as Monaco and at the Italian Grand Prix with varying downforce levels.

Hamilton and Mercedes have been very inconsistent with just one podium after a purple patch before the summer break that yielded three wins.

The 2025 season may see Ferrari in front of Mercedes, although the regulation changes for the following year are an unknown.