But while Sky F1 pundit Martin Brundle says he can buy into that argument, he still finds it a “bit surprising” that the seven-time World Champion hasn’t yet found his feet at Ferrari.

Martin Brundle: ‘Troubled times’ for Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton’s first four races as a Ferrari Formula 1 driver have seen him experience the thrilling winning in red, P1 in the Chinese Grand Prix Sprint, and the heartbreak of a disqualification when, just 24 hours later, his skid block was found to have excessive wear after the main race.

But in the midst of all that, life has not been as rosy as either the Briton or Ferrari dreamt it would be.

Hamilton has yet to feature on a grand prix podium, has finished behind Charles Leclerc on all four Sundays and he’s also struggled in qualifying.

Finishing Saturday’s qualifying in Bahrain down in ninth place, the seven-time World Champion cut a dejected figure.

“I’m just not doing a good enough job on my side so I’ve just got to keep improving,” he told the media including PlanetF1.com. “It’s definitely not a good feeling, for sure.”

Quizzed on what he could do to improve his pace, he replied: “I really don’t know. I don’t have a lot of answers for you guys, I just wasn’t quick today.”

He later added: The car has improved [with the upgrades], it’s just my driving.”

His “sad interviews” – as former F1 driver Brundle put it – reminded the Sky F1 pundit of Hamilton’s woes in his final season with Mercedes during which he said he’s “definitely not fast anymore.”

It’s once again raised the question: has age caught up with Formula 1’s most successful driver?

“Those sad interviews, we got quite used to those last year, didn’t we?” Brundle replied. “They’re now just replaying out at Ferrari.

“My experience is that different things go [with age]. I noticed my eyes going at Le Mans, for example, at night. I think Sebastian Vettel lost a bit of peripheral vision, for example, if I think at the end of his career.

“So I wouldn’t say there’s one size fits all on that, but I just still feel that age is not Lewis’s problem. No, I really don’t think he’s lost any vision or he’s lost any kind of driving ability as such.

“He just seems to have lost his way a little bit in getting a car how he likes it, and he’s got a host of young drivers around him who’ve got way over 100 races [of] experience and they’re still in their mid-20s.”

Brundle reckons Hamilton having to unlearn 12 years worth of Mercedes lessons and adjust to life with the Maranello team is plaguing him at the start of F1 2025.

It’s an adjustment, though, that he thought a driver of Hamilton’s experience would be able to make faster.

“Somebody explained to me today that it’s harder to relearn and move teams than it is to be a rookie and just learn in the first place,” said Brundle.

“Kind of buying into that a little bit. But it’s a bit surprising, I thought Lewis would pick it up.

“Clearly the car is not working, and of course, he wants to find out how to work with the engineer better, how to make the team, find out where all the green buttons are to find the speed that the clear already knows.

“But at the moment, I would say it’s troubled times.”

Hamilton is seventh in the Drivers’ Championship with 25 points, 52 behind championship leader Lando Norris. He trails Leclerc by seven.