Former F1 champion Villeneuve backs Norris to come good in 2025, expects Hamilton to peak with Ferrari

Former F1 champion Villeneuve backs Norris to come good in 2025, expects Hamilton to peak with Ferrari

In what is brewing as one of the most competitive Formula One seasons, former F1 driver and 1997 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve feels it could be Lando Norris who rises to the top.

“Lando was the only driver in the field that could step up to Max. If he’s still in the same mindset, the season should start strong,” said the Canadian driver during a media interaction ahead of the 2025 opening race in Australia.

Norris had his best-ever season in 2024, finishing as runner-up to defending champion Max Verstappen, but showed a fighting spirit during the middle stages.

“He did the right thing last year. He showed Max that he wasn’t going to move, that he was in there to fight,” said Villeneuve.

The former Williams driver himself knows a thing or two about standing his ground against a dominant force.

His infamous 1997 title-deciding clash with Michael Schumacher in Jerez saw him refuse to yield, ultimately winning the championship while Schumacher was disqualified.

In many ways, Norris’ approach against Verstappen mirrors that – showing no fear against a rival known for his aggression.

Though the British driver could not get his hands on the World Drivers’ Championship, he played a pivotal role, alongside his teammate Oscar Piastri, in bringing McLaren the constructors’ championship back after a 26-year drought.

The 53-year-old said that McLaren will still have the upper hand heading into the 2025 season but is not convinced that the parity between the young teammates will continue this time around.

“If you look at last year, the team didn’t do much to help Lando win. They tried to keep the two drivers in balance and that took a lot of points away from Lando and McLaren as well,” mentioning the instance where in Monza, the team lost out on a 1-2 finish because of poor strategy calls.

“Piastri came into F1 with amazing results. He needs to step up a little bit. He’s a super quick driver, but he wasn’t on Lando’s level last year,” he said.

However, Villeneuve is quite confident Ferrari will be right on the tail wing of the Papaya team, especially with seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton on board.

“Hamilton wants to be the driver with the most championships and try to win with Ferrari. This is the dream of most drivers.

“Once you have won everything, you still need to win with Ferrari,” the 11-time race winner said about a passionate Hamilton, whose on-track demeanour is the same as when he was in his prime.

“He knows how to cement his position inside the team. But he goes into Ferrari knowing that it’s [Charles] Leclerc’s team and he needs to become the team leader.”

“He knows how to win. He knows how to move a team forward,” Villeneuve said, adding that Hamilton had become complacent in Mercedes, often losing out to former teammate George Russell.

“It will be interesting because Ferrari is not an easy team. It’s a very energetic place, but not an easy place to evolve in and Leclerc knows it really well.”

But according to Villeneuve, it’s a win-win for Ferrari if Hamilton clicks immediately or Leclerc outlasts one of the greats.

(FanCode is the official broadcaster for F1 in India)