Max Verstappen can fix Ferrari as F1 insider says Lewis Hamilton is not the man

Former Haas F1 boss Guenther Steiner has become the latest person in the sport to question whether Lewis Hamilton is the right person to lead Ferrari.

The seven-time world champion's veteran leadership was hailed as a major positive for the Scuderia when he signed a deal to join them from the 2025 season onward, but results have been mixed so far.

That first year was headlined by an alarming lack of pace in comparison to team-mate Charles Leclerc, with the Monegasque outqualifying his team-mate 19-5 that year and securing a better finishing position in 18 of the 21 races where at least one of the pair finished (and neither was disqualified).

This season has been better for Hamilton - basically being neck-and-neck with Leclerc in qualifying and race finishes - but continued debates about team orders and 'rules of engagement' have dominated the back half of the season.

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Steiner: 'Relentless' Verstappen could be Ferrari solution

Steiner spoke about Hamilton's situation at Ferrari on the latest episode of the Red Flags podcast, saying: "But is he the guy who can make the team win? When strong drivers took over, they made it a success, but Fernando Alonso tried. Did he succeed? No. Do you think Lewis is the right guy to make this happen?"

Asked whether Max Verstappen, instead, could be that galvanising figure, Steiner said: "You know how Max is. He wouldn't stop. He's relentless. That could be the solution."

Steiner isn't the only person to question Hamilton's suitability for a leadership role at the Scuderia, with Ralf Schumacher saying after the Brazilian Grand Prix: "Hamilton never learned how to lead a team, not under Toto Wolff and not under Ron Dennis.

"That was never his job anyway. He just had to get in the car and drive as fast as possible. You can see that, and it's made him quite egotistical as well."

Schumacher also pointed to Verstappen as someone who might work better with Ferrari – although not Mercedes – saying: "Who did he grow up with, after all? Together with Red Bull. Mercedes is already a big team. If someone like Max went there now, I don't think they'd be too keen on that.

"At Ferrari, I think they're used to a driver being able to make demands, but in my opinion that still comes from Michael [Schumacher], from what he left behind there."

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