The high expectations surrounding Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari are giving way to disillusionment as his transition falters.
"From promises to doubts," declared a headline in Corriere della Sera, describing the seven-time world champion's shift from Mercedes to Maranello as "more complicated than expected."
The report noted that while Hamilton's predecessor, Carlos Sainz, is beginning to find his feet at Williams, Hamilton has yet to settle at Ferrari. "Even rookies like Ollie Bearman at Haas have needed less time to adapt," the newspaper stated, highlighting the "embarrassment inside and outside Maranello."
Speculation is mounting that Hamilton's Ferrari tenure, at age 40, could conclude as early as this December.
Former Ferrari engineer Luigi Mazzola, speaking to Sky Italia, drew parallels between Hamilton's 2025 struggles and Sebastian Vettel's challenging final seasons with the team in 2019 and 2020. Indeed, both multiple champions have been outperformed by Charles Leclerc.
"Leclerc is like (Max) Verstappen," Mazzola said. "He can handle a difficult car. It's his driving style."
Vettel, now retired but present in Saudi Arabia this weekend, came to Hamilton's defence. "It's a new environment, a different culture, different people. Some simply need longer to find their way around," the quadruple world champion told Sky Deutschland.
"There is no doubt about the fact that Lewis can drive. He can do everything that's asked of him. It's also completely normal to need a bit of time."
Vettel remained optimistic about Ferrari's prospects going forward. "If development moves in the right direction, Ferrari will be in a completely different position," he said. "They were very strong last year and only just missed out on the constructors' championship. You shouldn't write off either the team or either of their drivers."
