Jacques Villeneuve believes that Lewis Hamilton “doesn’t believe himself” in the ongoing Ferrari Murrays.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton finished sixth after a penalty from Max Verstappen, endured what he described as the “worst” race for Ferrari at the last Spanish Grand Prix.
Despite securing the season-best qualifying results and running to fourth in the early stages, Hamilton was mysteriously lacking in pace and was ordered not to get in the way of faster times by teammate Charles Leclair.
Hamilton eventually finished seventh on the road after being overtaken by Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg before being promoted to P6 due to a Verstappen penalty.
The 40-year-old Brit was left in a very disappointing mood after the race, with 1997 world champion Villeneuve involved.
“It’s not a happy place for Lewis Hamilton. Spain was difficult to see,” Villeneuve told BettVictor Casino.
“He shows speed and is qualified, so it’s difficult to understand, but it’s not consistent. And he seems to doubt himself. Even when he speaks, he doesn’t seem to be full of energy.
“It’s hard to see from a champion like Lewis. It’s not an easy place. It’s a team that you’re very attracted to.
Pressure on Ferrari to improve
Leclerc is now far better than Hamilton and claims to be the third podium of his season at Barcelona, but Villeneuve insisted that Ferrari needs to improve the car.
Ferrari already has McLaren’s huge 197-point drift in the Constructors Championship in just nine races of the season, and has not competed for a victory outside of Monaco.
Villeneuve criticized Ferrari for continuing the under industry.
“Ferrari needs to focus on improving, because it’s not enough right now. And if the two drivers don’t work the same way, it’s a little more difficult,” he added.
“We’ve heard that every race will be better! So I stopped listening to everything that’s supposed to come to the track.
“This is for years, for years of this situation, they haven’t figured it out yet, so I don’t think the answer lies in anything already there.”