Felipe Massa says Lewis Hamilton’s age would have swayed him against signing the seven-time World Champion for Ferrari for the F1 2025 season.

Hamilton announced earlier this year that he will join Ferrari on a multi-year contract from F1 2025, ending his long and successful association with Mercedes.

Felipe Massa airs concerns over Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari switch
The British driver claimed six of his joint-record seven World Championships with Mercedes, as well as becoming the first man in history to surpass 100 grand prix victories and pole positions.

Hamilton, who made his F1 debut with McLaren in 2007, will celebrate his 40th birthday next month, with the seven-time World Champion the second-oldest driver on the current grid behind Aston Martin star Fernando Alonso, 43.

Despite returning to winning ways with victories at Silverstone and Spa, the F1 2024 season proved to be one of the most challenging of Hamilton’s F1 career as he struggled to match Mercedes team-mate George Russell in qualifying conditions.

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It resulted in Hamilton conceding that he is “not fast anymore” at the penultimate race of the season in Qatar.

Massa, who lost the World Championship to Hamilton by a single point in 2008, believes the driver’s list of achievements make him a great signing for Ferrari.

Yet he conceded that he holds reservations over Hamilton’s advanced age, pointing to Michael Schumacher’s struggles following his F1 comeback with Mercedes in 2010.

Massa told Brazilian publication Estadao: “If you asked me if I would hire Hamilton, as the head of Ferrari, as a driver, yes, I would, without a doubt.

“Because of the talent he has. He is one of the most incredible drivers in F1.

“But because of his age, maybe not. Because of his age, if you look at the sport, age matters.

“And we have to understand how much age is weighing on him in this situation or not.

“I’m talking about myself, these days I need to train much more physically than I used to.

“It’s much harder to recover physically after a difficult race or an intense training session.

“Age takes its toll in some areas, that’s normal.

“Age is something that has weighed negatively on several drivers, as it did for Schumacher.”

Massa’s comments come after Eddie Jordan, the former F1 team owner, claimed that Ferrari chairman John Elkann “must have rocks in his head” to have replaced Carlos Sainz with Hamilton for F1 2025.

Jordan went on to urge Ferrari to back out of the deal to sign Hamilton, arguing that the driver’s admission that he is no longer quick enough should have alarm bells ringing at Maranello.

And he claimed Hamilton should retire gracefully from F1, suggesting that a lacklustre stint at Ferrari risks damaging his legacy.

Appearing on the Formula For Success podcast, he said: “If you don’t believe 100 per cent, you’re f**ked.

“And at the moment I heard Lewis [admit that he’s] not fast enough anymore, if I was Ferrari I would say close the book, find the way out. That’s it.

“A little message to you, Lewis: always remember in life, you’ve got your music, you’ve got your fashion, you’ve got all sorts of other things.

“You are, in most people’s view, the greatest driver of all time. Please remember what I’m going to say to you.

“Always, always think about the best exit. And this is the time to take the money off the table. Go.

“You are an amazing ambassador. We absolutely adore you.

“But don’t put yourself in a position where we think less of you because you’re marking time out at Ferrari. That’s all I will say.”