Scrutiny over Lewis Hamilton‘s disappointing season at Ferrari has continued with Ralf Schumacher wading in on the debate by naming who his replacement driver would be.
The seven-time F1 world champion has struggled at the iconic team this season, with his DNF at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday a microcosm of that.
The conclusion of that race weekend in Sao Paulo saw Ferrari slip to fourth in the constructors’ championship as both Hamilton and team-mate Charles Leclerc failed to finish the race.
Hamilton, who left Mercedes after 12 years for a dream move to Ferrari this year, is sixth in the drivers’ standings with three races left in the season. He is yet to finish on the podium but is banking on next season’s major regulation change suiting him and the team.
The 40-year-old is believed to have signed a three-year contract – which includes reported break clauses – with Ferrari worth £60million-per-year but Schumacher believes the Italian team should cut their losses and look to cheaper and more productive options.
And the driver in question Schumacher believes is that person? Haas’ 20-year-old Oliver Bearman.
Lewis Hamilton’s (left) future at Ferrari has been questioned by ex-F1 driver Ralf Schumacher
Schumacher believes Haas’ Oliver Bearman is the man Ferrari should hire instead of Hamilton
Speaking about what he would do if he was at Ferrari, the 50-year-old told the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast: ‘With Lewis Hamilton, I simply believe that you have to see it this way: he makes a lot of mistakes, and his speed is OK, but not better than that.
‘And now I see a young Bearman doing wonders with the Haas, and he costs a fraction of what Lewis Hamilton costs, who, I don’t know, earns high double-digit amounts.
‘We’re talking about more than £60 million a year. And I don’t think A) [John] Elkann can get that through anymore. That was his decision. Beyond the contract that you have, and B) I wouldn’t know if he’s not like that and says: “OK, it’s been a year now, Lewis Hamilton has kind of stayed put, he’s come a little closer, but the money, we’d rather give it to him, but we’d rather bring in a Bearman”.
‘We have a young driver who is pushing for the brand; we can build something with the rule change for the future. That could happen, of course. So, I’m curious. It’s exciting.
‘I mean, with such a high-profile personality, I expect more, and one thing must not be forgotten. If I were a manager now, I would also say, well, that’s not working, so I’d rather move on and build up a young, talented man like Bearman.’
Schumacher also questioned if Hamilton’s body can withstand setting constantly fast laps any more.
‘So the question is, can he do it? Is it just the car? Does he need to change the car and improve the concept next year, or is the film simply, as they would say, too fast for him now because he’s simply over the top?’ he continued.
‘I don’t dare say it now, but it almost looks a bit like that.’
Schumacher believes Bearman can do what Hamilton does at a ‘fraction’ of the cost (the current F1 duo are pictured last year sharing an exchange)
Schumacher’s comments come after Ferrari chairman John Elkann appeared to take a dig at Hamilton, insisting his drivers should ‘talk less’ and focus on performing after the Brit admitted his Ferrari dream had become ‘a nightmare’.
‘This is a nightmare, and I have been living it for a while’ Hamilton told Sky Sports after his DNF finish at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
‘The flip between the dream of driving for this amazing team and the nightmare of the results we have had, the ups and downs, it’s challenging.’
His boss, though, has ordered him to remain tight-lipped. Reflecting on the weekend, Elkann praised those working behind the scenes, but took aim at his drivers.
‘Brazil was a huge disappointment,’ Elkann said. ‘If we look at the Formula One championship, we can say that our mechanics are winning the championship with their performance and everything they’ve done on the pitstops.
‘If we look at our engineers, there’s no doubt that the car has improved. If we look at the rest, it’s not up to par. And we certainly have drivers who it’s important that they focus on driving and talking less, because we still have important races ahead of us and it’s not impossible to get second place.’
