Lewis Hamilton's impact undermined as 2x F1 champion feels Adrian Newey would be a bigger asset

Lewis Hamilton made the switch to Ferrari over the winter break, which has got the F1 world abuzz with excitement about how the seven-time champion will fare with the team. However, his former teammate and two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso does not think that he would make a big difference as compared to Aston Martin's signing of Adrian Newey.

Newey had revealed his intentions to break away from Red Bull last year before the Miami GP. Ferrari was in the running to acquire the design wizard but Aston Martin had the better of them and signed the 66-year-old with the team as a managing technical partner.

On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton's Maranello arrival had kept the F1 world on its toes, and people speculated how the Brit's addition to Charles Leclerc would make the Ferrari pair a star pairing. Despite the excitement of the two titans uniting, Aston Martin's Alonso undermined this move and claimed that a driver can not make a big difference in the team's fate.

Moreover, Fernando Alonso compared Hamilton with Newey and stated how the latter can take the team to new heights. He said (via GPBlog):

"Adrian Newey will always have more impact than any driver. Drivers come and go, the 20 of us here try to drive well and we have achieved things until we get to F1. I don’t know what Hamilton will bring or add to Ferrari, it will surely be less than what a designer can bring."

Regardless of the concerns, the 40-year-old Hamilton seemed excited to start his new venture with the Italian manufacturer at the F1 75 event.

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Lewis Hamilton is ready to take on the charge for eighth title

Lewis Hamilton at the F1 75 Live - Show - Source: Getty

Lewis Hamilton has already driven three different Ferrari F1 cars since he arrived at the Italian giant. The extensive testing program will supposedly help him get up to speed by the time the season opener at the Australian Grand Prix arrives.

Subsequently, when he was asked about the possibility of winning a championship with Ferrari, he said (via The Guardian):

"This team already has an insane legacy, they are not short in how many world championships they have won. In their DNA they have that winning mentality but the competition is fierce. We have had great results from other teams like McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes. It’s going to be close at the top but I have a great teammate.

“The energy I am receiving from the team, there is magic here. It’s going to take a lot of hard work and grafting from absolutely ­everyone and everyone is putting that in already to achieve it but it’s also about belief. Everyone here dreams of ­winning with Ferrari, every single person in this team."

Lewis Hamilton tried his hands at the SF-25 in Fiorano. Ferrari held the shakedown run for its 2025 challenger around its private track where Hamilton and Charles Leclerc tested the new machinery.