In a 2025 season where Lewis Hamilton struggled to find his footing in Ferrari red, Max Verstappen delivered a remarkably candid analysis, blending respect, lucidity, and brutal realism. Without seeking controversy, the four-time world champion reiterated an undeniable truth: time is not kind, and the move from Mercedes to Ferrari could only exacerbate difficulties already evident since the introduction of ground-effect cars.
Hamilton salary. VerstappenThis is undoubtedly the most defining rivalry in modern Formula 1. Two visions of driving, two opposing trajectories, a major breaking point in 2021… followed by an increasingly pronounced divergence. The Dutchman has never denied his respect for the seven-time world champion, but he has never been one for sugarcoating. When questioned, he offered a clear assessment of his former rival's situation, now engaged in a challenge as prestigious as it is perilous.
« If you don't feel safe or comfortable in the team dynamicYou can't be yourself, and that has an impact. ", Explain VerstappenBehind this phrase lies a simple observation: to leave Mercedes after eleven seasons, 84 victories and six Retiring from world titles is not just another change. It means abandoning a second family, an ecosystem built around you for over a decade.
Verstappen emphasizes the magnitude of the shock:
« You are leaving a team that has been your second family at Mercedes and with which you have forged a great career. They all benefited from it, Mercedes as well as LewisTaking a completely different path isn't easy, especially when you join a team. where your teammate is already set up »
This teammate is Charles LeclercAnd that's where the problem becomes structural. The Monegasque embodies the Ferrari modern: he knows its codes, requirements, weaknesses and strengths. HamiltonHe, however, discovers an environment that does not adapt to him, but demands that he adapt, to 40 years, in a discipline where the slightest hesitation is punished severely.
Verstappen on Hamilton: You won't be any faster at that age. Not necessarily slower, but certainly not faster. »
Then Verstappen He goes where few dare to venture publicly. He puts age at the center of the equation, without malice, but without mincing words:
« Age is not on your side. You won't be any faster at this age. Not necessarily slower, but certainly not faster. Meanwhile, Charles continues to progress.. »
A terse, almost clinical sentence that sums up the current state of affairs. At 40, Hamilton no longer benefits from the explosive margin of a pilot on the rise. In a F1 ultra-technical, dominated by aerodynamics and absolute confidence in the car, the slightest doubt becomes a major handicap.
The figures support this feeling: 86 points behind Leclerc in the championship. A significant gap, which cannot be explained by pure talent or experience, but by an accumulation of relentless factors: late adaptation, a demanding car, a new environment… and the passage of time.
Verstappen does not condemn HamiltonHe is simply describing a reality that the Formula 1 It never forgives for long. In this sport, history protects no one. And in 2025, even a seven-time world champion must contend with a truth as cruel as it is fundamental: F1 waits for no one.
