Lewis Hamilton looking miffed at the Qatar Grand Prix — Photo: © IMAGO

Lewis Hamilton branded 'narrow minded' in F1 approach critique

Lewis Hamilton had a poor 2025 season

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 19 January 2026 19:01

Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton's approach to his F1 critics has been branded as 'narrow minded' by Ralf Schumacher.

Hamilton struggled at Ferrari during his first season with the outfit in 2025, not claiming a single grand prix podium and finishing 86 points behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.

The seven-time champion has therefore been the subject of much criticism from certain parts of the F1 media, and some have suggested that his career in the sport could be coming to an end.

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The 41-year-old will need much-improved performances in 2026 to encourage Ferrari to give him a new contract, or he may have to face up to the prospect of retirement.

Hamilton recently shot back at his critics, suggesting that they weren't at his 'level', but Schumacher has now said that this is the wrong approach to take and the wrong attitude to have.

"That shows me that he's relatively narrow-minded," Schumacher said on Sky Germany's Backstage Boxengasse podcast. "You almost feel sorry for him, and I don't mean that in a bad way, but in a truly human way. That hurts, no question about it.

Can Hamilton get back to his best?

Hamilton's comments about his critics not being at his level are completely justified, with the Brit the most successful driver in the history of the sport.

He holds the joint record with Michael Schumacher for the most amount of world championships of any F1 driver, but leads Schumacher on the all-time lists of race wins, podiums and pole positions.

However, much like Schumacher's time at Mercedes between 2010-2012, Hamilton's last few seasons have begun to see a fall off in performance from the Brit.

He has only beaten a team-mate once in the last four seasons, and has only claimed two race victories in four full seasons since his agonising title defeat to Max Verstappen in 2021.

But Hamilton will hope that the new 2026 cars are more suited to his driving style. F1 is seeing a complete rules reset from this season onwards, and that could help Hamilton fight nearer to the front, particularly if his Ferrari team can make gains themselves on their rivals.

Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Ralf Schumacher