Worrying Lewis Hamilton theory emerges as Ferrari struggles continue ahead of Spanish Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton's former teammate, Nico Rosberg, has come up with a theory on why the Brit is struggling at Ferrari.

Ahead of the 2025 Formula 1 season, all eyes were fixated on Hamilton after he decided to leave Mercedes and make a high-profile transfer to Ferrari.

Hamilton was expected to hit the ground running straight away but the reality has been completely different.

So far, after eight Grand Prix weekends, the 40-year-old is currently sixth in the F1 standings, 16 points behind teammate Charles Leclerc.

In truth, the Ferrari car is way off the pace compared to rivals like Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren.

During the Spanish Grand Prix weekend, Rosberg, who was teammates with Hamilton at Mercedes, spoke about whether the Brit is starting to decline.

He said: "It’s a little bit of a continuation of the form from last year, where already there was a bit of a dip there and George had the upper hand and was beating him at Mercedes and also finished ahead in the points.

"And now it’s continued that a little bit. Just a little bit lacking here and there, especially in ultimate pace in qualifying. We know Charles is an incredible qualifier, so Lewis has to fight a little bit more there."

Rosberg then touched on Hamilton's age as a possible factor.

The German continued: "My answer would be: even if he’s the greatest of all time, at some point you are going to get a little bit slower and that’s age related.

"And when you’re 40, it’s going to happen sooner rather than later, so the question is whether that age has come where you start to get a little bit slower.

"And even a tenth or something makes a huge difference in the sport, especially when you’re up against some of the greatest from the new generation [like] Charles Leclerc, who is considered one of the absolute best qualifiers out there."

However, Rosberg did show sympathy for Hamilton, stating that the Ferrari car is 'the worst' car on the grid.

He continued: "The worst car is the Ferrari. Oh my goodness! Poor Lewis Hamilton. That car is a handful. It has the biggest understeer and it has the biggest snap oversteer.

"Lewis [had] a lot of understeer, then you can start to see the movement on the steering wheel. Turn 7, even on the entry, the rear is just so loose and snappy, so even on the entry Lewis had to fully steer out again to avoid binning. I really feel for him at the moment."

In qualifying, Hamilton produced a brilliant lap to qualify P5 for Sunday's race, ahead of his teammate, who managed P7.