Sergio Perez discusses ‘major challenges’ Lewis Hamilton faces with Ferrari move

Lewis Hamilton has been given some advice on changing Formula 1 teams from someone who’s done it on three occasions.

Hamilton stunned the world of sport on February 1 by announcing a move to Ferrari for the 2025 season.

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The move will be only the second of Hamilton’s career, having won the world title with McLaren in 2008, before moving to Mercedes where he won a further six championships.

Hamilton and Mercedes became the most successful driver-team partnership in F1 history during their past 11 years together, but a fumbling of the 2022 aerodynamic rule changes left the Brit frustrated.

With little to choose between Mercedes and Ferrari ever since, Hamilton may see 2026’s engine regulation changes as his perfect chance to win a record-breaking eighth world title.

But Red Bull’s Sergio Perez has warned it’s not as simple as jumping out of one car and into another.

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The Mexican told talkSPORT: “I think Lewis is a very experienced driver, but it’s a massive challenge when you change teams because there are a lot of things that are done differently.

“The way you explore the whole lap, we all come together within a couple of tenths but the way each team gets the laps is very different to anything else, so I think it’s an interesting dynamic.”

Perez was a member of Ferrari’s driver academy before entering the sport with Sauber in 2011.

After impressing with multiple podiums, he replaced Hamilton at McLaren in 2013, but only lasted a year before moving to Force India, which then became Racing Point, and now Aston Martin.

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Winning his first Grand Prix in 2020, Perez was without a contract the following year, but was picked up at Red Bull, who have since dominated the sport.

Last season was statistically the best of any team in history with 21 wins from 22 races, and Perez has revealed the team are doing things differently this year when it comes to their car.

“It’s a good step in the right direction,” he said at the launch of the RB20. “It’s a very aggressive style, changing the concept when you’ve been so successful requires a lot of hunger and the team has done an incredible job.”

“We saw at the end of last year, Mercedes, Aston, Ferrari, McLaren, they came really close to us so it will be a matter of who’s done the biggest step of all, so let's wait and see.”