‘Can’t handle the car’ – Shock Lewis Hamilton retirement claim made ahead of Miami Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari start has been so underwhelming that former driver Ralf Schumacher is worried about his Formula 1 future.

The seven-time champion left Mercedes in the winter as the most successful driver of all time, but with his new team he sits seventh in the drivers’ championship after five races.

Hamilton’s Ferrari smile faded last time out in SaudiCredit: AFPA completely unremarkable performance last time out in Saudi Arabia saw the Brit come home in seventh – 30 seconds behind teammate Charles Leclerc in third.

A despondent Hamilton said in his post-race interview that the rest of the year ‘would be painful’, and Schumacher has explained why both Hamilton’s speed and smile are gone.

“He just can’t handle the car,” the Sky Germany pundit said. “We talk a lot about Lando Norris, but it’s almost worse with him.

“You can see it, he’s really slumped. When you’re standing there at some point and have no more resources and are constantly slowing down, then you lose everything.

read more on lewis hamilton”I know from my own experience: If things continue like this, it’s no longer fun.

“Then he wakes up one morning and thinks: ‘Why am I doing this to myself?

“I’m not having fun anymore, I can’t manage it anymore. I’m getting in the way of my team.’”

Next up is the Miami Grand Prix for Hamilton, a boring circuit, but usually fun-filled event for attendees with celebrities on the side lines.

The Ferrari star will as always be the biggest draw on the grid, but Schumacher thinks another bad weekend could leave him with a tough decision to make.

Six-time Grand Prix winner Schumacher explained: “If this continues, there’s a danger that at some point he’ll say: ‘Look, I don’t want this anymore.

Hamilton called adapting to the car ‘horrible’ while Leclerc is used to itCredit: AFP”‘I want to live my life now, I’m 40 years old. I’m so rich, I’m not going to do this to myself anymore’.

“Obviously, for some reason, it’s not working out. It’s a huge project, what Ferrari and Hamilton had planned.

“But at the moment, he’s a long way from Charles Leclerc. I wouldn’t have thought it would be this extreme.

“However, China also showed that as soon as he gets into the car and the track and the car suit him, he delivers.”

Hamilton caused a big surprise in Shanghai when he qualified on pole position for the sprint race and then covered off the position for the victory.

It doesn’t count as a Grand Prix win, though, and in Sunday’s feature race he trailed fifth-place Leclerc in sixth and later both were disqualified for differing infringements.

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In feature races Leclerc has outperformed Hamilton in five out of five, while it’s 4-1 in qualifying.

It’s understood that Hamilton signed with the Italian squad until the end of 2026, with new regulations coming into force next season which could shake up the grid.