“This generation’s car does not suit Lewis Hamilton,” says former boss as he outlines his qualification struggles

Toto Wolff recently touched upon his former driver Lewis Hamilton's qualifying woes against George Russell. Wolff, in a recent interview with German media outlet, AMuS, stated that the current generation's cars do not suit the seven-time world champion much.

During the interview, Wolff was asked about Hamilton's statistical struggles against Russell in the 2024 F1 season. Hamilton was out-qualified 19-5 by his younger compatriot and teammate last season.

"This generation of car does not suit Lewis [Hamilton] so much," Wolff told AMuS after he was asked about Hamilton's drawback. "He brakes late, and hits the car aggressively in the corners."

"The car and the tires sometimes don't forgive that. This is more noticeable in qualifying than in the race. Possibly other influencing factors were added. I don't think he's already with his new team with his head. Lewis is too professional for that," he further added.

Formula 1 brought in new-generation challengers in 2022. The ground effect era cars came with larger wheels and better aerodynamics. They were significantly different from the cars used in the 2010s.

Besides the qualifying deficit, Hamilton also fell behind Russell in terms of points. The 40-year-old claimed 223 points last season with five podiums, while Russell amassed 245 points with four pole positions and four podiums.

Max Verstappen defended his F1 drivers' championship in 2024, finishing ahead of Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc.

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Toto Wolff affirmed Lewis Hamilton's legacy will live on at Mercedes

In one of his recent interviews, Toto Wolff stated that Lewis Hamilton's legacy will live on even after his Mercedes days. The Briton moved to Ferrari this year on a multi-year deal, but his heritage with the Silver Arrows will be everlasting.

Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes and Mercedes GP Executive Director Toto Wolff talk on the grid during a race weekend - Source: Getty Images

"Nothing is going to take away 12 incredible years with eight constructors’ and six drivers’ championships" Wolff said. “That is what will be in the memory. We’re going to look back at this great period of time, rather than a season of races that were particularly bad. We will stay with the good memories.” (as per Racingnews365.)

Lewis Hamilton joined Mercedes from McLaren in 2013, where he won his maiden F1 title. He arrived at a new, fairly unsuccessful team, but as he left Toto Wolff's team, he did so with 84 wins, several drivers' and constructors' titles, and one of the most successful F1 teams.

The British driver claimed the F1 titles in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020, and helped Mercedes claim constructors' titles back-to-back from 2014 to 2021.