Ted Kravitz says Lewis Hamilton may never see the benefit of one thing he’s doing to help Ferrari

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Lewis Hamilton thought Ferrari were on the verge of becoming champions when he joined from Mercedes. He wouldn’t have abandoned the Silver Arrows after 12 years if he didn’t have that confidence.

But Hamilton has realised the scale of his task at Ferrari since he started work in January. They’re still second in the constructors’ championship, where they finished last year, but a 14-point gap to McLaren has spiralled to 207.

Ferrari are free to turn their attention to 2026, with the championship a write-off this year. Mercedes will share that view, while Red Bull will have to decide how long to persist with Max Verstappen’s increasingly unlikely title bid.

Even McLaren might be able to cut off development relatively early, such is their advantage. As the recent rule cycles have shown, it’s extremely difficult to catch up from a slow start, and Ferrari are painfully aware of that reality.

Lewis Hamilton may turn Ferrari into title winners, then decide to leave

Hamilton signed a two-year contract with Ferrari, but it may contain the option for a further year. Fernando Alonso may have committed to racing until he’s 45, but there’s a good chance that this is the Briton’s final deal.

Hamilton has tried to inspire an operational improvement at Maranello. Speaking after Austrian GP qualifying, he told Sky Sports that they’d set a new ‘world-class’ benchmark in their execution.

But this is a long-term process. Ferrari’s drivers have criticised the team’s strategic choices over the radio in recent races, and Hamilton picked up a grid penalty in Monaco following miscommunication from his engineer.

Fred Vasseur can utilise the most successful driver in the sport’s history to try and elevate standards. As Ted Kravitz warned on the F1 Show, though, Hamilton may not be there long enough to fully see the benefits.

Kravitz said: “He might even get to the point where he has helped make Ferrari into a championship-winning team again, but finds himself, at 41, 42, 43 years old, thinking ‘I’ve got them to this point, but I’m not going to be driving anymore’.

“Maybe his greatest legacy might be getting Ferrari to where they need to be, even if he might not be there to take the fruits of the labour.”

Lewis Hamilton fans will love James Vowles’ verdict on his Ferrari form

Ferrari have a quandary for next year. In his first 11 races with the team, Hamilton has noticed that Leclerc ‘drives with enormous oversteer’.

This highlights the difference between the pair’s styles. Vasseur may have to decide whether to lean towards Leclerc, the team’s best performer this season, or a seven-time champion in Hamilton.

Of course, he’s likely to seek some form of compromise. But Leclerc has been with Ferrari since 2019, so some of these extreme handling characteristics may be built into the concept.

The Monegasque has been ahead in 18 out of 24 competitive sessions so far. But former Mercedes colleague James Vowles sees Hamilton getting ‘better and better’ and is adamant that ‘there’s still life in him yet’.