Lando Norris
McLaren
Mercedes
Red Bull
Ferrari
Williams
Racing Bulls
Aston Martin
Haas
Alpine
Jolyon Palmer believes Charles Leclerc’s satisfaction with Ferrari, when compared to Lewis Hamilton’s frustration, comes down to one key factor.
Hamilton’s struggles in Miami last weekend were there for all to see. While the Ferrari driver managed to close the gap to his teammate, Charles Leclerc, by Sunday, it was not a good outing for Hamilton.
Despite earning a P6 finish at the Miami Grand Prix, thanks in large part to Leclerc’s 20-second penalty, Hamilton looked slower compared to how he started the season.
Ralf Schumacher believes Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso should retire at the end of 2026. Do you think he is being fair?
Hamilton was uncompetitive in Miami, something that came as a surprise given his rejuvenated form at the start of the season and the several upgrades Ferrari brought to the race weekend.
But Jolyon Palmer believes Lewis Hamilton’s struggles, especially compared to Charles Leclerc, come down to their differing experiences with Ferrari’s simulator.
READ MORE: Ralf Schumacher says it’s ‘about time’ Lewis Hamilton retires so Oliver Bearman can join Ferrari
Jolyon Palmer says Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari complaints show Charles Leclerc is ‘stronger’
Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Jolyon Palmer explained the recent complaints from Lewis Hamilton about Ferrari’s simulator.
He noted that Leclerc finding more correlation between his track and simulator performance shows that he is comfortable and happier at Ferrari, which is why his performance is stronger.
“I do think Sims have come a long way since even the last nine years. The idea is that they can get really close now.
“But also for the drivers, sometimes each driver is different, as well as how they’re feeling grip and balance through their core, their hands, their feet at all the parts. Charles is finding it okay, and his performance is stronger than Lewis’s at the moment.
“Obviously, with new parts coming, Lewis closed the gap through the Miami weekend, but initially, there was quite a solid gap on Friday. So maybe that is an indication that Charles is happier and the sim or his driving isn’t as badly correlated between Sim and track.”
READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton is quickly giving Ferrari no choice but to promote Oliver Bearman for 2027
When will Lewis Hamilton retire from Formula 1?
Lewis Hamilton has expressed frustration with Ferrari’s simulator for a long time
Speaking after the Miami Grand Prix, Hamilton admitted that he’d be stepping away from relying on Ferrari’s simulator, due to the discrepancy compared to his experience on track.
“You know I don’t like simulators in general, but I sit at the simulator every week on the build up to this race, working on correlation constantly, and you go on it, you prepare for the track, you drive it, and you get the car setup to a certain place, and then you come to the track, and that setup doesn’t work.”
Even as far back as last year, Hamilton ‘hardly ever’ used the Ferrari simulator, due to his dislike of the method and the aforementioned discrepancy compared to real track experience.
Ferrari tried erasing Hamilton’s simulator habit, attempting to get him on board with their approach. But he clearly hasn’t taken to it.
Hopefully, Ferrari and Hamilton can come to some sort of solution so that he can recover his form and get back to competing for a championship.
Receive exclusive F1 news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
