Berger: Lewis and Leclerc can win F1 title for Ferrari

Ferrari legend Gerhard Berger has tipped Lewis Hamilton to help the team lift the F1 world championship in 2025. The Austrian star who became a fan favourite during his two stints at Maranello was speaking for the first time about his old team’s prospects for the new F1 season and his comments are likely to embolden an increasingly confident tifosi as the dream team partnership of Charles Leclerc and Hamilton becomes a reality ahead of the first grand prix in March.

Hamilton arrived at Ferrari HQ in January and was mobbed by fans outside the factory before testing the 2023 car around the Fiorano circuit. The following week Hamilton tested the car again at Barcelona where he recorded his first crash – walking away unhurt.

According to Berger, Hamilton’s experience will count for as much as his outright pace.

“[Ferrari has] two good drivers, but Lewis has something that could be really quite valuable for Ferrari. He is seven-times world champion. He will bring a lot of experience, a lot of momentum, and maybe some guys will come from other teams to work with him.

“Engineers love to work with a guy who is seven times a champion. If he is successful, if he wins the championship, that will be the biggest thing ever in Formula 1. It doesn’t really matter if he is quicker than Leclerc or not, what matters is can he bring enough points for another championship.”

Like Hamilton, Berger knows what it’s like to start a new life aboard the Prancing Horse at Maranello. The first of his two stints at Ferrari came in 1987 after being spotted and recruited by Enzo himself. He left the team after a huge accident at Imola in 1989 and joined McLaren alongside Ayrton Senna but returned to Ferrari in 1993. The following season he won the German Grand Prix in the Scuderia’s 412 T, the team’s first win since 1990.

“I was one of those drivers attracted by Ferrari, maybe it’s the same for Lewis,” he told Motor Sport in a wide ranging interview which appears in the current issue of the magazine. “It was the name, the history, the race cars, the road cars of the 1960s, ’ 70s and ’80s. Ferrari was the pinnacle, different to any other team and it’s still the same today.”

Berger believes Hamilton’s presence will also benefit Leclerc. “Lewis will be a motivator, it will be positive for Ferrari. Also, it’s great for Leclerc to have the chance to compete against a seven times champion. He may be a little bit quicker, so if he does better than Hamilton then that’s great for his CV. It’s about who is better all round, not about who is faster, and Lewis knows what to do, how to win.”

Gerhard Berger: The Motor Sport Interview Once a Ferrari man, always a Ferrari man. Gerhard Berger tells us of his interview with Enzo, his emotional attachment to the Scuderia and why Lewis is the right man for Maranello Read the full interview in the latest issue of Motor Sport Read now