Hamilton Matching Leclerc In Qualifying Would Be Surprise Says Jordan

Sunday, 10 November 2024 at 20:00

Former F1 team owner Eddie Jordan suggested he will be very surprised if Lewis Hamilton manages to match Charles Leclerc's qualifying pace in Ferrari.

In 2025, Charles Leclerc's teammate in Ferrari will change. Carlos Sainz will join Williams and the Monegasque will be partnered with the seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton.

Hamilton is the most successful driver in Formula 1, but he's also already the second-oldest / second-most experienced driver on the grid after Fernando Alonso.

The matchup between the experienced, proven World Champion and young World Champion in the making is what many people, including Max Verstappen, are looking forward to.

While Former F1 team owner Eddie Jordan didn't predict who would ultimately come out on top, he told talkSPORT he would be very surprised if Hamilton matched Leclerc's qualifying pace.

"When he goes to Ferrari, well, first of all, he's got to beat Leclerc. Charles Leclerc is no stooge. Let me please tell you that in a qualifying position, I will be surprised."

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"I will be surprised if Lewis can match him in the qualifying. But who knows? Lewis is a very dark horse. You just never know what you're going to get."

Hamilton has had a problem matching his teammate George Russell's qualifying performance this year, and Leclerc is said to be the best qualifier on the grid.

Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone said in a recent interview that he thought Hamilton was better off going to Ferrari than staying at Mercedes, which "wouldn't do much to keep him."

The problem is that he will face a driver who is very well-established within the team. Nevertheless, Jordan said he believes Hamilton can expect fair treatment, considering how much the Italian F1 team spent on him.

"But I'd say Ferrari, to be fair, they spent an unbelievable amount of money to get Lewis there. I would say he will get a very fair shot at it. I don't think there'll be anything untoward, and we'll just see what happens."