Ralf Schumacher has cast doubt on Lewis Hamilton clinching the 2025 title in his debut Ferrari season, labelling it "very unrealistic."
The ex-F1 driver instead favours Charles Leclerc as Ferrari's prime contender. "I don't know why, but somehow I have the feeling that if anyone can do it in a Ferrari, it will be Charles Leclerc," Schumacher told DPA news agency.
At 40, Hamilton is the grid's second-oldest driver, but Schumacher points to a bigger hurdle. "When you join a new team, it takes at least six to eight months until you can really use the whole environment perfectly and get to know each other—no matter how quickly you feel comfortable and no matter what you do," he said.
"At least that was my experience."
Paddock consensus pegs McLaren, Red Bull, and possibly Mercedes ahead of Ferrari for 2025. Leclerc told Sky Italia the SF-25 "struggled with the balance" on Bahrain's final test days.
"McLaren seems like a very strong car," the 27-year-old admitted, "but it is too early to say more. We need to focus on ourselves."
Leclerc dismissed fears of friction with Hamilton, recalling past tensions with Alonso and Rosberg. "I'm not a very complicated person," he smiled to RTBF. "I get along with 99 percent of the people I meet. And with Lewis, we had a great feeling from the start."
Team boss Frederic Vasseur, however, wants rivalry. "There is a very good understanding," he said.
"But there needs to be competition between them. I don't want them to be the best of friends. Not enemies either, but they are competitors above all. It has to stay in that area—they have to always try to do better than the other. That's what drives them."
