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Veteran F1 car designer Gary Anderson commented on Lewis Hamilton's struggles adapting to the Ferrari SF-25, mentioning that a driver of his experience should not be taking a long time to get acquainted with the car. He also mentioned that the rookies who have come from a different tier are also managing to pull decent performances against their teammates.
Hamilton moved from Mercedes to the Scuderia this year, marking a huge switch in his Formula 1 career as he prepared to pilot a Ferrari-powered F1 car for the first time. However, he hasn't been competitive against his rivals on the track; moreover, his teammate, Charles Leclerc, has managed to outperform him in most races.
A majority of Hamilton's struggles are reportedly rooted in the difficulty he is facing adapting to the car. It was also mentioned that the car is not suited to his driving style. However, veteran F1 car designer Gary Anderson feels that a driver of Lewis Hamilton's caliber and experience should not be facing such issues.
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He stated that rookie drivers coming from Formula 2 managed to adapt better to the car and have performed decently against their teammates.
"Whenever we look at the rookie drivers coming up, Hadjar, Bearman, Doohan, you know, they're coming from a completely different Formula," Anderson said on The Race F1 podcast. "The car is a completely different package to drive, you know, different dimension altogether and yet relative to their teammates they're all doing a fairly comprehensive job."
He then mentioned that Lewis Hamilton, who has been racing in Formula 1 for close to two decades now and has won seven World Championships, should not be struggling to adapt to a car within the same category.
"So, I don't think a seven times world champion with however many races he's won um should be struggling to adapt to a car in the same Formula. It shouldn't be like that."
While many expect upgrades from the team throughout the length of the season could help him adapt better, Hamilton has been outspoken about the issue, as he feels there is no short-term solution.
"At the moment, there's no fix": Lewis Hamilton predicts a "painful" season
Ferrari introduced upgrades in Bahrain earlier, and the car seemingly improved as Charles Leclerc was able to score a podium in Saudi Arabia the following week. This was the team's first top-3 finish in the season so far, however, Hamilton was still stuck down in P7.
Discussing his issues after the race, Hamilton sounded rather pessimistic as he mentioned that there is no solution currently for the car and its drivability, further claiming that it would be a "painful" season.
"At the moment, there's no fix," Lewis Hamilton said (via Sky Sports). "So this is how it's going to be for the rest of the year. It's going to be painful."
Ferrari were the runner-ups in the Constructors' Championship last year and remained largely competitive towards the end of the season. However, they haven't been able to carry that momentum and currently stand in fourth place with just 78 points in their bag.
