Ferrari already has a Lewis Hamilton replacement in the wings when the F1 legend decides to retire, reckons Johnny Herbert
Former F1 driver Johnny Herbert feels Ferrari already has a ready-made Lewis Hamilton replacement in Ollie Bearman should the Brit decide to retire at some point in the future. The young prodigy would be making his full-time F1 debut next season with Haas, where he would be teamed up with Esteban Ocon.
Fortuitously, however, Bearman has had a chance to race in F1 this season as he's had three outings as short-term replacements for Carlos Sainz and Kevin Magnussen. He replaced Sainz in Jeddah early in the season when the Spaniard had an emergency appendix operation. He also had two opportunities with the American team as a replacement for Magnussen.
Bearman was brilliant in all of these performances with the young Brit catching the eye of everyone relative to Nico Hulkenberg, who is rated very highly by everyone.
Since the driver is affiliated with Ferrari and has impressed a lot, there are already suggestions that he could find himself in the scarlet colors. As quoted by PlanetF1, Johnny Herbert also feels the same as he said that the team appears to have a ready-made replacement for Lewis Hamilton already in place. He said,
“He seems to be able to adapt and show speed. That is a really good sign for next year, which is going to be important for him at Haas to try and dominate Ocon. That is exciting as it’s another Brit and, potentially down the line with the relationship he has got with Ferrari, who knows?"
He added,
"He could be joining Ferrari at the end of Lewis’s time there – whenever that may be. So, there is a good replacement already there and Ferrari are very aware that he is someone they want to give a chance to when the opportunity arises.”
Herbert on the possible Lewis Hamilton-Charles Leclerc dynamics at Ferrari
Johnny Herbert felt that Lewis Hamilton's primary motive as he goes to Ferrari would be to get off the blocks quickly. He does not want to find himself in a situation where he's already at a deficit at the start of the season. Backing the British driver to accomplish that, Herbert said,
“Lewis will be looking to fly out of the blocks as quickly and as positively as he can. Has he still got what it takes? I think he has. For Lewis Hamilton, it will be something fresh. His relationship with Fred Vasseur [Ferrari team boss] will be positive and benefit the team. He really respects him."
He added,
“Then there is Charles to deal with at the same time which will really motivate him. It is all about motivation for the driver. It should be a really good start for Ferrari because of the position they are in at the moment. They’ve got to tweak a couple of things to ensure overall consistency but the car has got the pace to win races as Charles has proven.”
Lewis Hamilton has a 2+1 contract with Ferrari where the driver has the option to either continue to race beyond 2026 and extend it to 2027 or retire. The partnership begins in 2025, and all eyes will be on how well the F1 veteran can do in the Italian team.