Martin Brundle thinks Lewis Hamilton has ‘terribly’ missed what Max Verstappen has at Red Bull

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Lewis Hamilton’s first season with Ferrari has come to an end, and it can only be described as disappointing.

The seven-time champion went without a podium for the first time in his incredible career. Teammate Charles Leclerc scored seven podiums as Hamilton finished sixth in the standings.

He was six points off of matching his worst finish in the championship, with Kimi Antonelli, his Mercedes replacement, narrowly losing out on P6. So much was expected from Hamilton in his new adventure, but it has been a difficult year from start to finish.

Things looked great when the 40-year-old won the Sprint in China, but his season derailed after that point. Struggling to adapt to the car and Ferrari’s operations, as well as underperforming upgrades left Hamilton well off the pace.

He was knocked out in Q1 in the last three races of the season, lining up 16th in Abu Dhabi. Hamilton sincerely apologised to Ferrari for his performance in qualifying, summing up just how miserable 2025 has been for him.

Martin Brundle thinks Lewis Hamilton has ‘terribly’ missed a strong relationship with his race engineer

Switching from Mercedes to Ferrari was always going to be tough. Hamilton did bring key personnel with him to Maranello, including Jerome D’Ambrosio and Loic Serra, but race engineer Peter Bonnington did not follow.

Hamilton and ‘Bono’ struck up a brilliant bond at Mercedes as they won six titles together, but it has not been the same with Riccardo Adami at Ferrari, with the pair clashing several times over the radio in 2025.

Speaking on Sky Sports F1 (7/12, 11:52 am), Martin Brundle thinks Hamilton has ‘terribly’ missed having a strong relationship with a race engineer, similar to what Max Verstappen has with Gianpiero Lambiase at Red Bull.

Sum up Lewis Hamilton’s debut season at Ferrari in one word…

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“They know how each other thinks, and GP Lambiase translates what Max wants, Max gets quite vociferous about that on a Friday sometimes,” he said.

“I think, for example, that’s what Lewis has missed terribly going to Ferrari, somebody who understands what they’re saying, what they need. All the little nuances.

“And also, a bit like Ross Brawn and Michael Schumacher were able to do, GP Lambiase and the strategists and Max go fast, go slow. Whatever they need Max to do, they know he will deliver it flawlessly.”

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

Lewis Hamilton will face more pressure at Ferrari in 2026

Damon Hill questioned if Hamilton has ‘lost his edge’ at Ferrari after seeing another disappointing display in Abu Dhabi. The Brit shook his head at all the media after his Q1 exit.

He did manage to fight back to P8 in the race, but those are not the results that he, the team, or the Tifosi would have expected at the start of the season. Ferrari fans wanted the championship, but they instead got P4 in the standings.

Hamilton has never got on with ground-effect cars, winning just three races in the current era. With the 2026 F1 regulations bringing fresh changes, it could be just what he needs to perform.

But the pressure will be high on the 40-year-old, especially with his contract expiring in 2026. Nico Rosberg warned Hamilton that the ‘whole of Italy’ may give up on him if his form does not improve.