Hakkinen: Mercedes would benefit Sainz's kind of talent

A 103-time Grand Prix winner and seven-time F1 World Champion all with Mercedes power, Hamilton ditched the German team for Ferrari, uniting the sport's greatest and most famous team with its greatest and most famous driver of this era.

Furthermore, with Mercedes on the wane and Ferrari on the rise, Hamilton may have again picked a fine time to depart a team, as he did a decade or so ago when he defied 'advice' and critics to leave McLaren for Mercedes a decade.

But magnificent as the Hamilton Ferrari Chapter can be, it is not a slam dunk and could backfire should Charles Leclerc do to Sir Lewis what he did to Sebastian Vettel, namely destroy his teammate, which will be the objective.

Prompting a number of questions, top of the list being: Does the 39-year-old Hamilton of today still have what he had when he was 28, back in 2013 the year he joined Mercedes? Was he worth hiring at the expense of on-form and ultra-impressive Carlos Sainz? Will Ferrari cope?

Writing in his latest UniBet column, Hakkinen reckons: "It’s clear the team’s focus has been on Charles Leclerc, who enjoys a long-term contract. So the news that Lewis Hamilton will join the Italian team in 2025 raises some questions. Will the team be able to give both Charles and Lewis the same genuine opportunity?

"We have seen before how destructive equal status can be in a team," recalled Hakkinen, referring to the time Nico Rosberg and Hamilton shared the Mercedes garage. And before that the famous Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost saga at McLaren.

Regarding the marginalising of Australian Grand Prix winner Sainz: “It is incredible to think that Carlos Sainz Jr, the guy who won the Australian Grand Prix and brought Ferrari its second Grand Prix victory in 8 months, does not currently have a drive for next season.

"It means that one of F1’s quickest and most consistent performers is now available. Carlos, in my opinion, deserves a competitive drive in a team which needs the combination of consistency, speed and experience. Mercedes would benefit from this kind of talent as they seek to return to competitiveness.

"You could argue that Aston Martin really ought to be going for Carlos too, but let’s not forget that Carlos started his F1 career at Scuderia Toro Rosso. Red Bull know his abilities as well as anyone," added Häkkinen alluding to reports that the World Champions are interested in the Spaniard returning to the Bull-pen.