Ferrari Could Have Won More With Lewis Hamilton

With the Brit, Lewis Hamilton at the wheel, Ferrari would have won the 2018 world championship, and many more, according to Luca di Montezemolo, the former Ferrari president.

He told Rai Radio that Lewis Hamilton had fully deserved his fifth drivers’ title this year with the giant racing team Mercedes. “This year Hamilton made the difference in his best season since his debut,” said Montezemolo. “He has had moments of weakness and crisis, but this year with Ferrari he would have won”, he continued. “I say that not to belittle Vettel, who has every opportunity to rebuild with a competitive car,” the Italian said.

However, Montezemolo also said that losing the title was not all Sebastian Vettel‘s fault. “This Ferrari is a very different Ferrari to the one I left in October 2014, in terms of men and mentality,” he said. “Ferrari did a good car this year, which in some situations was even better than Mercedes. But the final part was missing”, he added.

“Vettel made some decisive mistakes, but for the world championship you have to do everything to keep him up. He is a driver of the highest order and always close to the team,” said Montezemolo, dropping praise on Sebastian Vettel. He also made a comment on the new driver, who has replaced Kimi Raikkonen. “In frustration he must be supported, even more so with the arrival of a very strong boy (Leclerc) with a great future”, he said. “Schumacher(Michael) also made mistakes in the first days, but it is always important to speak clearly in the locker room and support the team in public”, he added.

On a personal note, the 71-year-old Montezemolo ruled out that he would ever return to F1, as he said laughing- “From zero to a hundred, the possibility is less than zero.”