Sebastian Vettel sees a big mistake he made during his time at Ferrari and says, with Lewis Hamilton in mind: If you want to be successful in red, you have to understand more than just the car.

Sebastian Vettel has spoken openly about the challenges Lewis Hamilton has faced since his move to Ferrari, while also looking back self-critically on his own time as a Formula 1 driver for the Scuderia.

In the Beyond The Grid podcast, the four-time world champion explains why, in his view, the Italian language in particular plays a key role in success at Maranello.

When asked how difficult it is to switch from a British team like Mercedes or Red Bull to Ferrari, Vettel replies without hesitation: “Different, very different. I loved it. I don’t regret it and I had a fantastic time.”

Vettel himself drove for Ferrari from 2015 to 2020, collecting 14 Grand Prix victories during that time. Nevertheless, he was denied the world championship title with the Scuderia. The German wanted to pass on his experiences from this phase to Hamilton, who will compete for Ferrari for the first time in 2025 after 18 years with British-dominated teams.

Vettel: Drivers always have to adapt

Vettel explains that as a German, he was involved in an international environment from an early age, but for a long time, Formula 1 was strongly influenced by the English language and culture for him: “I adapted, and I loved it.”

“I love British humor, I love British people, I love a lot about it, the racing, the approach. In a way, I think I’ve adapted,” says Vettel. This adaptation is necessary for every driver, regardless of their nationality.

Hamilton, too, had to adapt, even though his native language is English. Nevertheless, the move to Ferrari is something fundamentally different.

“He was in a British team, every team is different, very different, and he was with Mercedes for a very, very long time. The move to Ferrari is certainly a huge difference because the heart and culture of the team are Italian,” says Vettel.

Although English is also the official working language at Ferrari, there are limits. “There are also employees he doesn’t understand because they don’t speak English or don’t speak it very well. In that case, you can get by somehow, but do you really understand the people? And do you understand the culture?”

Vettel admits this mistake at Ferrari

Looking back, Vettel sees this as a crucial mistake during his time at Ferrari. “I learned Italian, I took lessons, and I got by and understood a lot, but I wasn’t perfect,” he says candidly.

“I really should have studied the language more intensively. Maybe I should have spent more time in Italy to better understand the culture. Because culture is also about the people.”

Vettel also passed this insight on directly to Hamilton: “I said to Lewis before he made the move: ‘The only advice I can give you—the best advice—is: learn the language. Learn it really, really well.’”

According to Vettel, the key is to really engage with the language and culture: “To learn a language, you have to expose yourself to it. You talk to people, you’re in the country where the language is spoken. That way, you also expose yourself to the culture, and the rest will fall into place.“

The German makes it clear that language is not a decisive factor in pure racing: ”When it comes to tuning or technical details, you could say it’s irrelevant, and it is. But for the big picture, to understand the culture and spirit, it’s still extremely important.”

Vettel: Hamilton deserves a Ferrari victory

In addition to the cultural component, Vettel also talks about the sporting expectations for Hamilton’s time at Ferrari. “The longer it takes, the more difficult it becomes,” he comments on the question of the first victory. His triumph in Malaysia in 2015 took a lot of pressure off the team and drivers internally at the time.

But Vettel has faith in Hamilton’s personality and mental strength: “Lewis has an incredible ability to reflect on his situation, including the difficulties he is currently going through.” He is convinced that Hamilton is still in a phase of his life where this challenge is exactly what he wants. In terms of pure performance, he still believes the seven-time world champion is capable of anything, but emphasizes the complexity of achieving success at Ferrari: “In terms of his performance, he definitely has a real chance. But a lot of things have to come together.”
“You need the right team, the right people, and the timing has to be perfect.” If all of that comes together, Vettel is convinced that Hamilton deserves such success: “It would be great if it worked out. He would deserve it. But in the end, we’ll see how everything develops.”