Toto Wolff tells Ferrari why they must keep faith in Lewis Hamilton as Formula 1 ‘pattern’ emerges

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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff knows better than anyone how to get the best out of Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton won six of his seven drivers’ championships with Mercedes after 12 seasons with the Silver Arrows.

Toto Wolff oversaw Hamilton’s incredible era at the top of Formula 1 as the 40-year-old helped Mercedes win eight consecutive constructors’ titles.

However, at the beginning of last year, Hamilton announced that he would change teams and join Ferrari in 2025.

It’s almost certainly going to be Hamilton’s final stint in F1 as he seeks a record-breaking eighth championship.

Unfortunately, things haven’t gone to plan for Hamilton or Ferrari this season, with both parties still waiting for their first Grand Prix victory.

Ferrari are facing internal issues as their car appears to have taken a step backwards with team principal Fred Vasseur facing increasing pressure.

Wolff has now explained why he believes Ferrari are yet to see the best from Hamilton.

He thinks a ‘pattern’ is now set to emerge that will make the 40-year-old even more competitive as the season goes on.

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Toto Wolff backs Lewis Hamilton to succeed at Ferrari despite slow start to 2025 F1 season

Wolff was asked on the Bloomberg Hot Pursuit Podcast about Hamilton’s start to life at Ferrari and how he sees how his first 10 Grand Prix have gone, and replied: “You don’t unlearn driving that quickly.

“In 2021, he was great, then the regulation changed, and it got a little bit more difficult, but he was still performing on a very high level.

“And just by changing teams, suddenly you don’t lose your skills. I think everybody needs to have a period of adaptation, different car, different DNA of how the vehicle drives, new engineering team that you need to start to work together.

“Then be involved in the continuous development of the car, so it suits your driving style.

“It’s an all-Italian team. He’s a British guy, parachuted in there, and that takes time.

“Also, we have seen a little bit of a pattern that Lewis, at the beginning of the season, he needs to come in to find the mojo and the second half of the season has always been very strong.

“So don’t ever write Lewis Hamilton off.”

READ MORE: All you need to know about Mercedes F1 CEO and team principal Toto Wolff

Ferrari doubts remain over update package Lewis Hamilton is desperate for this season

After a stuttering debut in Australia, Hamilton must have thought he had made the right choice after taking pole position and winning the Sprint Race in China.

Unfortunately, just 24 hours later, he and Charles Leclerc were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix.

Hamilton’s skid block had excessive wear, and since that moment, aside from the race in Monaco, Ferrari have had to raise their car, which has impacted performance.

Ferrari are working on a new rear suspension to try and resolve the issue, but time is running out, especially with a new set of regulations on the horizon in 2026.

However, doubts remain over Ferrari’s upcoming update package and whether it will make Hamilton and Leclerc as competitive as they would like.

Both championships are already out of the equation, and Vasseur may be better off asking his team to fully focus on next season’s car.

Hamilton will know that he’s only got a few more opportunities to win his coveted eighth championship and can’t afford for Ferrari to make another fundamental design error.