Toto Wolff has backed Lewis Hamilton to come good at Ferrari, even if the seven-time world champion is not quite seeing eye-to-eye with his new employers following a string of disappointments

Toto Wolff has backed former Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, who is currently in a dispute with his Ferrari boss(Image: Mark Sutton – Formula 1, Formula 1 via Getty Images)

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff remains hopeful seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton can turn his season around, despite not seeing eye-to-eye with his current boss. Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur has insisted his drivers should concentrate less on car upgrades and more on maximising their current vehicles’ performance.

The Italian manufacturer had a rather unremarkable weekend at the Canadian Grand Prix, where Charles Leclerc came in fifth and Hamilton sixth after running over a groundhog on the 13th lap. Coincidentally, these are also the current positions of the Ferrari pair in the drivers’ standings, but Hamilton’s former boss urged patience as he adjusts to his new environment.

“Changing teams is not enough to unlearn how to drive,” Wolff said on Bloomberg’s Hot Pursuit podcast (via the Daily Express). “We all need a period of adaptation. Lewis drives a different car and works with a new team of engineers, without forgetting that it is an entirely Italian team. All this takes time.”

Ferrari will be optimistic that some engineering adjustments in the second half of the campaign could bring about significant improvements. And Wolff suggested that’s when Formula 1 icon Hamilton tends to hit his stride.

“Usually, at the beginning of the season, Lewis has to find his rhythm,” he continued. “While in the second part he has always done very well. So I would not exclude him from the protagonists.”

The British ace is hoping this will be the case if he’s to salvage any pride from the current season. Despite changing teams, it’s fair to say 2025 has been a major let-down so far by his usual standards.

The 40-year-old hasn’t managed so much as a podium finish in Ferrari colours thus far. But Hamilton has insisted modifications to the car are necessary for them to truly compete.

Frederic Vasseur wants his drivers to focus more on getting the most out of their cars as they are(Image: Getty)

Team principal Vasseur seems more focused on Ferrari’s approach to race weekends being the real problem. But Hamilton told reporters in Canada that he is “constantly battling the engineers” to try and enhance the SF-25’s performance.

Ferrari remains in contention for second place in the constructors’ championship, but the drivers’ title is way out of either star’s reach. Hamilton made it clear when he said: “Ultimately we need upgrades. We need an upgrade to be able to fight the guys up front.”

This directly contradicts Vasseur, whose job security has recently been under scrutiny. While the Frenchman acknowledges that upgrades are coming, he prefers to concentrate on what his drivers can achieve with the current model.

Hamilton is adamant Ferrari’s cars are in need of upgrades to compete at the top(Image: Getty)

“We will have an upgrade soon, before the UK. And perhaps another one a bit later,” he said after Montreal. “But honestly today, I think there is much more in the execution and what you are getting from the car than the potential of the car itself.”

Vasseur added: “Honestly, I want to put the focus much more on the execution than the pure potential of the car. But we will bring something.”

This final remark will sound sweet to Hamilton and Leclerc, who are keen on catching up with their leading competitors. However, it does suggest an underlying discord within the core team at Maranello.