Formula 1 champion Alan Jones - the last Australian to win an F1 championship - has warned Lewis Hamilton that his impending move to Ferrari may not work as well as he hopes.
Hamilton confirmed his stunning move in the off-season, just months after signing a new deal with Mercedes.
One of the most successful drivers in F1 history heading to the most successful and iconic team on the grid gave F1 fans a mouthwatering prospect when the stunning move was first announced.
However, Hamilton has started the 2024 season off in poor fashion, while Ferrari are still looking incapable of challenging Red Bull for race victories in the short term.
Hamilton finished the opening two races of the season in seventh and ninth respectively, and is currently sitting down in ninth place in the drivers' championship.
His Mercedes team-mate George Russell has beaten the 39-year-old in both qualifying sessions and both races so far, as Hamilton struggles to get to grips with his new W15 car.
Now, Jones has suggested that Ferrari may need more than just Hamilton, if they are to challenge for world championships in the future.
“I don’t know whether [Hamilton] going to Ferrari is going to be the end all and be all of what Ferrari needs,” Jones told the Herald Sun.
“Okay, it was good because when he signed for Ferrari their share price just went up by about $20 billion or something.
“But at the end of the day, Lewis has really got to start to pull his finger out a little bit quite frankly. George Russell is now starting to give him a bit of a hiding now most times and the more that goes on, the more that will play on him.
“Once again the more fashion shows that he goes to and the more that he sprouts around the place, that is not going to help him either.
“I really don’t think it was [the right move for Ferrari] to be honest. In terms of increasing their share price, yes. But I just don’t think he is going to be the [answer].”
“I think so, yes,” Jones affirmed when asked if Hamilton’s best could be behind him.