Leclerc 'Going To Feel Overshadowed' By Hamilton After Ferrari Move Says Hill

Thursday, 29 February 2024 at 15:30

Charles Leclerc will have a new teammate in 2025, and he may feel "overshadowed" once Lewis Hamilton joins him, according to Damon Hill.

The 2024 F1 season is certainly going to be interesting, but the main talking point during the off-season wasn't this year's season but the following year since Hamilton signed a contract with Ferrari starting in 2025.

He will join Leclerc in the team, and for the Monegasque driver it will be a new challenge in Ferrari. He will have a seven-time World Champion racing alongside him, but he already has a similar experience.

In the past, four-time World Champion, Sebastian Vettel joined Leclerc in the team from Maranello, but it certainly wasn't a move anywhere close to Hamilton's as that quite literally wreaked havoc in the world of motorsport.

According to former F1 champion, Damon Hill, who spoke to SkySports, the Brit's surprising move also generated more interest in the sport, as it generate buzz also outside of it and drew new eyeballs.

"It’s an inspired decision. It’s answered a question of ‘what do you do with the rest of your career when you are coming towards the end?’ It’s invigorated him and going to Ferrari has injected a lot of interest in Formula 1."

Hill even compared the move to when Nigel Mansell joined the team in the past. Arguably, Ferrari and Hamilton are two of the biggest names in the sport, and the buzz the move has generated is not really that surprising.

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"Everyone has been talking to me about Lewis going to Ferrari. That’s created interest in that move and it’s a great name – a great name with a big team. I’m getting echoes on when Nigel Mansell went to Ferrari. Somehow he inspired the fans with this big name coming to the team."

But the situation doesn't change only for Hamilton, but also for Leclerc, who will have a new teammate, and it won't be just about the racing on-track, but also about what happens off the track, as the Monegasque driver may feel overshadowed by the interest that Hamilton will generate, according to Hill.

"Charles is probably going to feel a little bit overshadowed because there’s going to be an enormous amount of attention on Lewis when he goes there."

"He’s going to have to ask all the questions of where he’s at in Ferrari. It’s a great opportunity for Charles. If he beats Lewis he establishes himself as a great and if he doesn’t, he find out where he fits."