David Coulthard during the 2025 F1 Italian Grand Prix. Photo: RacePictures

Is Lewis Hamilton past his prime? Ex-F1 driver Coulthard thinks so

15:43, 16 Sep

Updated: 16:14, 16 Sep

byNorberto Mujica

Former F1 driver David Coulthard feels Lewis Hamilton has "lost his mojo," questioning if whether or not the Ferrari driver is now "past his peak".

Lewis Hamilton stares on at the F1 paddock in Monza. Photo: RacePictures.

“So the question is, and I’m going to say it, is he past his peak?”

- David Coulthard

“Well, the old cliche is it never rains, but it pours,” Coulthard told Channel 4. “It just feels that off the back of the end of his Mercedes run alongside George, he’d lost his mojo there.

“We hoped that he would rediscover it at Ferrari, be energised by the power of the Tifosi, but it just hasn’t worked out," Coulthard added.

Arguing that his statements come not from his opinion, but from facts instead, the Scot argued that the most telling sign of all is how consistently Hamilton has placed behind his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc.

“And this is not an opinion business, because I know there’ll be people at home going, ‘how dare you say something negative about Lewis Hamilton?’

“The guy is brilliant, and he has been brilliant, but you’re judged against your teammate, and that’s the one thing that stands between him right now and a big result. He’s got to consistently get in front of Charles.”

Hamilton trails Leclerc in number of poles, podiums, points finishes, overall points tally, and more relevant statistics. When confronted with this fact, Coulthard wonders what the British driver will do to overturn the trend that alarmingly stands against him, and in doing so debunking Hamilton's alien car claims, putting forth a hard question.

“Yeah, those are the statistical facts. And I wish I had some kind of guiding light as to how he’s going to turn that around.

“I struggle to buy into the whole change your culture. It’s a race car, right, left, throttle, brake.

“Yes, there’s another way of terminology, but a power unit is a power unit. Downforce is downforce.

"When you break this sport down to its simplest forms, it’s about human and machine, and the very best at their peak are able to master that.

“So the question is, and I’m going to say it, is he past his peak?,” Coulthard concluded.

Hamilton on the rise, eyes 2026 success with Ferrari

Hamilton currently trails Leclerc by 46 points in the Drivers' standings. The Briton, though, has seen an upturn in terms of performance that has seen him close the gap to Leclerc in qualifying and in the race in the two race weekends since F1 returned to action following the summer break.

As 2026 looms on the horizon, Hamilton seems to be taking the propper steps to ensure a full acclimatisation at Ferrari, as the Scuderia looks on at the reshuffling of the cards with next year's regulation overhaul as a golden opportunity to get into the fray for wins and titles.

Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Frederic Vasseur pose in team photo in Monza. Photo: RacePictures.

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