F1 champion fearful of 'hate mail' over Ferrari criticism

Ferrari

F1 champion fearful of 'hate mail' over Ferrari criticism

The champion is usually outspoken

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Saturday 27 December 2025 10:55

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F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve has revealed that he received 'hate mail' for some of his comments about Ferrari.

Not shy to share his opinion, the 1997 world champion is one of F1's more outspoken pundits and isn't afraid to impart, what he deems, some hard truths.

The likes of Lewis Hamilton and Yuki Tsunoda have found themselves on the receiving end of his harsh tongue, with the Canadian recently branding Hamilton's seven world titles as 'easy'.

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Speaking to PokerScout, the champion refused to comment on Ferrari and cited the backlash he had received for previous comments.

"I don't want to comment on Ferrari really; I'll just get hate mail again," Villeneuve said.

"It’s easy to criticise Ferrari because they're in the limelight. So, you always see everything they do or don't do. That's not the case with other teams."

Can Ferrari pull through for 2026?

Ferrari in general have been on the receiving end of a lot of criticism in 2025, but have focused all their attention – and hopes – on 2026 and the new regulations.

Villeneuve believes, however, that not every driver or team will emerge successful next year, adding a dose of realism in regards to expectations for next year.

"Not every driver will be able to adapt to the 2026 regulations," he explained.

"The gaps in 2026 will be bigger. The strategies will be very different because they will have to use their battery and their movable wing and so on. So, there's a lot of things we'll discover.

"We don’t know what to expect. That’s the thing. It could be great, it could be off. Let’s hope it's great. It's a big change and it will be a big change in approach on how they race.

"Not every driver will adapt to it well, not every team will adapt to it well."

F1 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Charles Leclerc Jacques Villeneuve