Former Formula 1 race winner Juan Pablo Montoya has claimed that “not even Max Verstappen can beat” Lewis Hamilton should Ferrari produce a “fast car” in 2025.
Hamilton has endured a challenging period in the sport, taking two Grands Prix victories in the three seasons since his contentious title defeat to Verstappen in 2021.
The Brit has also cast aspersions on his own driving, telling media including at Motorsport Week the Qatar Grand Prix last year that he is “definitely not fast anymore”.
Now 40, Hamilton will hope that the much-anticipated move to the Italian marque will provide a career renaissance as he seeks to win a record-breaking eighth title.
The move has already caused a stir amongst the passionate Tifosi, who flocked to the private Fiorano track two weeks ago to see Hamilton’s maiden track outing in red.
The ‘old Hamilton’ could win in right machinery
Montoya, who took seven wins in his six-year F1 career, is of the belief that Hamilton’s previous form, one that has cemented his status as one of the all-time greats of the sport, will return if the team are able to provide him with the right car.
“What happened to Lewis Hamilton is what happened to Fernando Alonso,” he told Crash.net.
“They still have 100 per cent of their speed, but they will still somehow qualify just in the top 10. If the car is capable of winning, then they would be much higher.
“If Hamilton has a fast car this season, we’ll see the old Hamilton from a few years ago, the Hamilton that nobody can beat, not even Max Verstappen.
“But the question for Ferrari is how will they keep him motivated?”
Hamilton sustained his first setback as a Ferrari driver, crashing at a test in Barcelona last week which caused team-mate Charles Leclerc’s run to be abandoned.
But that hasn’t hampered Hamilton’s excitement about his venture with the Maranello-based squad as he said on social media the first race “can’t come soon enough”.
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