Despite being two of the oldest drivers on the grid, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton are showing no signs of slowing down. While this speaks volumes about their talent, former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher believes that only one of them has a shot at the World Championship left in them.
Schumacher chooses Alonso over Hamilton on that front. He feels that the Spaniard is closer to his third Title than Hamilton is to his eighth. “In terms of fighting spirit, he [Hamilton] is simply not Alonso,” he said to Motorsport-Total.
At 42, Alonso is three years older than Hamilton. However, he isn’t thinking of calling it quits anytime soon, having recently signed a contract extension with Aston Martin. It will keep him at Silverstone until at least 2026.
40-year-old Fernando Alonso is still targeting a third title pic.twitter.com/LvTHCkrzEt
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) September 23, 2021
Schumacher made the comments about Alonso’s potential third title while talking about Hamilton’s Ferrari move. The German questions this, and asks why the Maranello-based outfit didn’t go for Alonso instead.
Hamilton will move to Ferrari in 2025, where his main aim will be to win Title number eight. But he has to compete with an existing star on the team, Charles Leclerc. On the other hand, Alonso can rest assured that Aston Martin will build its team around him.
Hamilton is also used to being the number one in any team he’s been at. George Russell’s arrival at Mercedes has seemingly burst this bubble. And Schumacher highlights a lack of motivation emanating from the seven-time World Champion because of this.
Is Lewis Hamilton unsettled at Mercedes?
The Monaco GP could turn out to be a defining moment in Mercedes’ 2024 season. The team brought in upgrades for its W15, and they seemed to improve the overall package. However, only Russell got them in his car.
“He thinks he is being disadvantaged. Russell got an update and he didn’t,” hypothesized Schumacher. Hamilton himself conceded after Qualifying for the Grand Prix that there wasn’t anything he could have done to beat his teammate.
At Ferrari, Hamilton could be faced with a similar predicament. Even though he is arguably one of the greatest ever, Leclerc is a star for the future. Tough decisions will have to be taken internally if the two square off for a Title fight in 2025 or beyond.
Given Hamilton’s propensity for needing his team 100% behind him, it could cause complications in his bid to get that elusive eighth Championship.
