Lewis Hamilton 'fighting' Ferrari as champion tipped for shock exit

Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari future has become one of F1’s biggest talking points, with former driver Juan Pablo Montoya also weighing in on the champion’s career.

Expectations were high when Hamilton first donned a scarlet race suit, with hopes the 40-year-old could return Ferrari to world title success while Hamilton himself would clinch a record-breaking eighth.

Heading into F1’s summer break however, Hamilton only has a best grand prix result of P4 and countless downhearted interviews to show for his Ferrari career.

Phrases such as 'I am useless' or Ferrari 'need to change their driver', have led to speculation that Hamilton could retire early, with pundits and former drivers all weighing in on the topic.

“I think he'll wait next year for sure to see where they are. And if they struggle next year and he's not competitive, I think he might just go, ‘You know what? That’s it. I've got other things in my life’,” Montoya said to CoinPoker.

“At the end of the day, he's got a long contract with them to be an ambassador whether he drives a car or not. But you don't want to see Lewis leave on a low.”

Should Hamilton retire from F1?

Hamilton has only secured two grand prix victories in the past four seasons, and has frequently been outpaced by his younger team-mates George Russell and Charles Leclerc.

“It's a wakeup call. In the last couple of years when the Mercedes stopped being really good, I think he backed off in qualifying because there was no need. And I think to get it back is really difficult,” Montoya continued.

“Look at an onboard of Lewis in qualifying. That car does not suit him at all. You look at Charles, and Charles looks like Max, looks like Lando. He is precise.

“And Lewis is fighting with the car. He doesn’t trust the car. He’s trying, but it is just the way the car is set up for him does not match his driving style.”

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