Mark Webber has posed the question as to whether Ferrari are regretting signing Lewis Hamilton for 2025.
The Brit will team up with Charles Leclerc but Webber wonders if Ferrari would now prefer to keep Carlos Sainz.
Hamilton decided to trigger an option in his Mercedes contract to allow him to leave at the end of 2024.
He has had a difficult start to the season, finishing seventh, ninth and ninth in the three races he has finished.
F1 news: Mark Webber wonders if Ferrari regret signing Lewis Hamilton
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Hamilton has won six of his seven World Championships with Mercedes but his time with the Silver Arrows could end with a whimper.
He hasn’t won a race since the 2021 season when he controversially lost his title to Max Verstappen on the final race of the final lap of the campaign.
Sainz, meanwhile, has outperformed Leclerc so far in 2024, winning the Australian Grand Prix just a fortnight after appendix surgery.
He has also recorded third-placed finishes at both the Bahrain and Japanese Grand Prix.
Webber says Sainz is determined to catch the eye of other teams in an attempt to win a contract for next year.
And he wonders if Ferrari now think they have made the wrong decision in bringing in Hamilton.
Webber told Channel 4: “Look if you can’t get motivated because you don’t have a contract in your top pocket, you’re in strife.
“I think he’s a man on a mission now, he’s got the bit between his teeth, and obviously, he’s driving brilliantly.
“Ferrari, you know, are they regretting their move?”
Sainz said in Suzuka that he is in conversation with a host of teams regarding a deal for next year.
But he is still none the wiser as to who he will be driving for after he leaves Ferrari.
Sainz said: “I’m talking to a few [teams] because that’s what my management team and myself should do when I don’t have a job for next year yet. So, we’re talking to pretty much all of them.
“It’s just a matter of obviously going more into detail and seeing the more realistic options and what are the best options for me and for my future, which I don’t have any news for you or nothing to say here.
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F1 news: Carlos Sainz will be replaced by Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari
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“The only thing I would say is that, obviously it’s time now to speed up a bit everything and hopefully we can get it sorted sooner rather than later.
“I have no clue where I will be next year. It’s true we’re talking to many teams.
“I just need to keep focused on what I’m doing, prove to myself and everyone that when I’m given a fast car, I maximise what I’m given and I deliver.
“It’s been a strong start to the season. With this car, you can shine a bit more.
F1 news: Carlos Sainz has had three podium finishes in three races in 2024
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“With last year’s car, I did performances similar to this year but you couldn’t shine.
“It was a much more difficult car to drive, a lot more degradation and you were looking backwards in the race.
“This year you are looking forwards and are overtaking, which allows you to shine a bit more. It helps but I will keep pushing.
“It also depends on other teams, what they choose to go for. They know I’m available, so let’s see what happens.”
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