Vettel warns of Leclerc and Hamilton’s competitiveness at Ferrari | formula 1

– Charles is good, Charles is calm. He’s very fast, very competitive, but so is Lewis. So, I think it will be more difficult for the team to manage them – said the former driver, four times F1 champion, in an exclusive interview with the “Sky Sports F1” channel.

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Vettel has known Hamilton as a rival since 2008, his first full year in F1. However, the pair only competed directly for the 2017 and 2018 titles, when the German was racing for Ferrari and the Briton for Mercedes came out on top.

The German was fired in 2020 and replaced by Carlos Sainz, who leaves the Maranello team in 2025 for Hamilton’s arrival. In his final years in F1 until his retirement in 2022, he began to develop a friendship with his Mercedes rival.

Last week, in an interview with Sky Sports in Germany, the former driver revealed his disbelief at the news of Hamilton’s move to Ferrari and contacted his friend afterwards. Vettel spoke again about his surprise at the news, which he considered “exciting”:

– I was surprised, as I think most of us were. But it was exciting. Obviously, he is looking for a new challenge and it will be different to see him in red, in a different color.