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Guenther Steiner delivered a brutal verdict on Ferrari's signing of Lewis Hamilton this season, stating that the team made the wrong decision in replacing Carlos Sainz. He also claimed that the team has spent too much time and resources this season on identifying what was wrong with Hamilton's car instead of developing the car.
However, that has not yielded the desired results. The Briton continues to struggle with the drivability. He was signed for this season, replacing Carlos Sainz. The latter had been racing with the team since the 2021 season and had delivered quite competitive results, and there was seemingly no reason to replace him.
Hamilton, on the other hand, has struggled with the car and its competitiveness. He has only managed to finish best at P4 this season, and has battled the midfield for most of the year.
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Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner feels that Ferrari made the wrong decision by replacing Sainz with Hamilton. He also explained that the team could have put their resources into working on the car more with Sainz still in the team.
"Carlos was doing a good job. They wouldn't have all the interference from outside of Lewis not performing, you know, so the team could focus on going racing, making things better in instead of always trying to find out why Lewis doesn't like the car."
Lewis Hamilton was expected to face issues with the car initially, considering he had driven for Mercedes for the past decade. However, even with modifications and work on the car throughout the season, he still feels that the car is "snappy." He told the media in Azerbaijan that he did not have enough confidence in the car's braking, and hence missed out on crucial performance.
However, there is one more aspect where Steiner feels Sainz's signing would have been better at.
Guenther Steiner pinpoints financial strains of signing Lewis Hamilton
The Italian feels that signing Lewis Hamilton also comes with a major financial strain for Ferrari. As per reports, the team signed the Briton for close to $450 million, with a yearly package of around $70 million. This is expected to put a major load on the team, who are already struggling in the Constructors' Championship.
Guenther Steiner claimed that this wouldn't have been an issue with Carlos Sainz. He added:
"I respect Lewis but in the moment for you know for the unrest he brings into the team and around the team is it worthwhile investment? Maybe not. And also the investment moneywise I'm pretty sure it's a lot higher with Lewis than with Carlos."
Charles Leclerc has managed to score multiple podiums this season and was also in race-winning contention in Hungary (until he lost pace in the second stint). However, the team plummeted to third place in the Constructors' Championship after the race in Baku, and one of the major reasons is the lack of competitive finishes from Lewis Hamilton.
