Lewis Hamilton has been backed to have crunch talks with Ferrari engineer Riccardo Adami after his struggles at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The world tuned in to see the 40-year-old compete for the first time since leaving Mercedes.
Hamilton’s debut for his new side was one to forget, however, with the Stevenage-born racer only able to finish 10th.
That’s two places lower than team-mate Charles Leclerc, while Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and George Russell secured spots on the podium.
Lewis Hamilton has been backed to have crunch talks with Ferrari engineer Riccardo Adami after his struggles at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday
PA
With Hamilton struggling, Sky Sports pundit Karun Chandhok has expressed a belief that he already needs crunch talks with his Ferrari engineer.
He said: “One of the things that came out of all the radio messages we played as he and his engineer Riccardo Adami need to have a bit more time to understand just how much communication Lewis wants and what type of information.
“There were a number of times Lewis asked, tell me something, they would give him information but then Lewis said it’s too much, stop telling him and leave it to me. They just need to build that bond.
“Race engineers and drivers will spend more time together than they do with their partners in the season.
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“It’s still round one and they just have to find their feet, maybe have a conversation between now and China.
“I would be interested to listen to the radio in China and see if it’s different. They just need to have a conversation.”
On Hamilton getting just one point, he continued: “They took a risk, thought the shower would be short and the drivers could survive and when the rain stopped they would be fine but as it transpired that wasn’t the case.
“Lewis came on the radio and said it was too dangerous, we have to top.
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Lewis Hamilton finished below Charles Leclerc on his Ferrari debut at the Australian Grand PrixREUTERS
“They underestimated how much water there would be on the track and went way down the order. Disappointing for them.
“Lewis Hamilton has not gone to Ferrari for one point. He would be OK with it.”
Hamilton himself, meanwhile, has reacted to his disastrous day.
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The 40-year-old admits that it went ‘worse than I thought’ and also called on better communication when it comes to the weather in future.
“It was very tricky and went a lot worse than I thought it would go. The car was really, really hard to drive today,” he said.
“For me, I’m just grateful I kept it out of the wall because that’s where it wanted to go most of the time.
Lewis Hamilton could only finish 10th at a rain-soaked Australian Grand Prix
REUTERS
“A lot to take from it and just getting acclimatised with the new power unit in the wet conditions.
“The settings it requires are different, and a different way of driving and a different set-up on the steering wheel.
“I hung out as long as I could, got in the lead at one point. Just the guidance with how much more rain was coming, was missing there, so I think we missed out.”
