Ex-F1 team boss predicts Charles Leclerc could defeat Lewis Hamilton to become Ferrari’s lead driver

Former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner suggested a way for Charles Leclerc to gain an upper hand on Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari.

Ex-F1 team boss predicts Charles Leclerc could defeat Lewis Hamilton to become Ferrari’s lead driver

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton (via Scuderia Ferrari)

Lewis Hamilton joins Charles Leclerc at Ferrari this year. The seven-time world champion comes to Maranello with high ambitions. However, former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner has asserted that Leclerc can come out on top by the end of the year.

Hamilton aims to bring glory back to Maranello during his stint with the team. The British driver is determined to make a mark and push himself to the limit. On the other hand, Charles Leclerc is planning to analyze every move of his world-champion teammate.

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Guenther Steiner highlighted that Lewis Hamilton remains a really solid performer. However, the Briton was getting old. Steiner reckoned that if Leclerc can manage to learn the skills of the 40-year-old over the course of the upcoming season, he could certainly establish himself as the Scuderia’s lead driver.

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I think Lewis is very good with running races, but he’s getting older. Charles is very young, and if he picks up the race skills Lewis has got by working with him, or copying him, being in the same team, I think Charles could be the lead driver end of the season.

Guenther Steiner told CNN

Ferrari on right track after 2024

The Prancing Horse finished second in the standings last year, narrowly missing out on the world title. Guenther Steiner pointed out that Ferrari made impressive progress in the latter half of last year, with every new update bringing more performance. As such, Steiner reckoned that Lewis Hamilton’s squad was on the right track ahead of the Briton’s debut campaign at Maranello.

Lewis Hamilton and Fred Vasseur (via Getty)
Lewis Hamilton and Fred Vasseur (via Getty)

I think Ferrari, last year, the second half of the season, they made good progress, and they seemed to every time they did something, they got quicker. So I think they figured out what they need to do.

Guenther Steiner added

Certainly, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc will not shy away from battling one another this year. Both drivers are hungry for success and will leave no stone unturned to gain an upper hand. Nevertheless, the Tifosi would be eagerly waiting to see the two drivers potentially fight for victory in the coming weeks.