‘Destroyed’ is a heavy word in Formula 1, but Davide Valsecchi didn’t hesitate. The former GP2 champion and TV pundit says Ferrari’s 2025 season has left him “a bit worried,” and that Charles Leclerc has “destroyed” Lewis Hamilton on merit — in qualifying and on Sundays — in the seven-time champion’s first year in red.
With three rounds left, Hamilton trails Leclerc by 66 points in the standings. Ferrari, meanwhile, are still hunting their first win of the season. Leclerc has stacked up seven podiums; Hamilton hasn’t visited the rostrum once since his blockbuster switch from Mercedes. If you’re looking for the bright side in Maranello, Valsecchi argues, it begins and ends with car No. 16.
“It seems to me the only really positive thing about Ferrari this year is Leclerc,” he told Fanpage.it. “I always thought he lacked consistency to be at the top, but today the only thing that is rock solid is him, almost always ahead of his teammate. In sporting terms, he destroyed him in qualifying and in the race, and his teammate has won seven world championships.”
It’s a bracing read on a project that was supposed to be Hamilton’s grand restoration — the champion who wanted to be the champion who brings Ferrari back, not just another name who couldn’t. He’s under contract through at least the end of 2026, right as F1’s new era arrives with a ground-up chassis and power-unit reset. That’s where Valsecchi’s skepticism really kicks in.
Asked if Ferrari have tied themselves to a medium- or long-term Hamilton-centric plan, he didn’t flinch. “That’s exactly what worries me. Hamilton spent three years with [George] Russell at Mercedes. Twice out of three times, he lost the comparison. If you’re talking about the short term, I agree, but if you’re talking about the medium to long term with a 40-year-old driver, I have my doubts. He comes to Ferrari, he’s a year older, and he’s been destroyed by Leclerc. If you say to me, ‘Next year we’re betting on Hamilton,’ I say, ‘Think again.’”
Ferrari began 2025 talking titles after losing the 2024 Constructors’ Championship to McLaren at the final round in Abu Dhabi. The reality has been more sobering. McLaren have surged again, and the double looks very much on — Lando Norris leads Oscar Piastri, with Max Verstappen third in the Drivers’ standings. Ferrari’s response to the wobble was to extend team boss Fred Vasseur’s deal mid-season after Italian media buzzed about his future. Continuity over churn — at least on paper.
But Valsecchi points to stability as the gold standard when you’re about to roll the dice on a big regulation change, and he doesn’t see enough of it. “Halfway through the season, they wanted to sack Vasseur, then they renewed his contract, then they changed a lot of people,” he said. “Usually, when there is a change in regulations, the most stable team should be able to predict the future. At the moment, it doesn’t seem like the most stable team to me. I hope they can work some magic in the winter, but I wouldn’t bet a lot of money on Ferrari being the strongest car next year.”
The 2026 reset is radical: smaller, 30kg lighter cars, active aero front and rear in place of DRS, vastly increased electrical deployment, and fully sustainable fuel for the internal combustion engine. That level of change tends to shuffle the deck and expose who adapts quickest. Valsecchi’s money? On youth.
“I have a feeling that with the new regulations, the younger drivers will have an advantage in terms of adaptation. Those who are older will suffer a little. Hamilton has already struggled to adapt at Ferrari this year. If you ask me, I’m betting on Leclerc, no doubt about it. If Hamilton proves me wrong, I’ll be delighted, but today I think Leclerc is much more likely to have another great season.”
The tension around Maranello spiked in Brazil after a double DNF — Hamilton’s race ending with floor damage after contact with Franco Colapinto’s Alpine, Leclerc out as collateral in Oscar Piastri’s clash with Kimi Antonelli that punted the Mercedes into the Ferrari. President John Elkann didn’t sugarcoat it, publicly telling his drivers to “focus on driving, talk less.” Both Leclerc and Hamilton responded with statements backing the team and vowing to fight on. There’s unity in the messaging, at least, even if the results column has been thin.
Strip the emotion out and the picture is simple: Leclerc’s been relentlessly tidy, fast and patient, dragging points out of weekends that could have collapsed. Hamilton’s side of the garage has been more boom-or-bust — more bust than boom — in a car that hasn’t given him much margin while he learns its language. That’s not a moral failing; it’s the reality of year one in a Ferrari, in a field where McLaren got the jump and Red Bull keep nicking the odd Sunday.
Does “destroyed” overshoot the runway? Depends on your taste for theatre. The head-to-head has been one-way traffic this year, and people tend to remember that sort of thing when winter comes. But nobody inside the building thinks 2026 will be won in a headline. It’ll be won in wind tunnels, dynos and correlation meetings, where Hamilton’s famous feedback loop is supposed to matter most. Valsecchi might not put money on Ferrari next year. Plenty at Maranello are betting their careers that he’s wrong.
Three races remain for Ferrari to salvage second in the Constructors’ and reframe the narrative. Leclerc looks nailed on to keep humming. Hamilton, if he wants to quiet the chorus, needs a clean, convincing run-in. He didn’t come here to be a footnote.
