James Vowles worked with both Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher during his time at Mercedes. And in a recent podcast appearance, he cast his verdict on which driver ‘had the most natural talent’.
Vowles was a founding member of the Mercedes F1 team after serving as chief strategist for forerunners Brawn GP. The team immediately signed Schumacher for its comeback, along with Nico Rosberg.
This was far from a peak version of Schumacher – he was outperformed by Rosberg over three years before retiring for good at the end of 2012. But there were moments when the seven-time world champion displayed his legendary talents, most notably with the fastest lap in his final Monaco qualifying.
| RANK | DRIVER | TENURE | RACES |
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 2013-2024 | 246 |
| 2 | Nico Rosberg | 2020-2016 | 136 |
| 3 | Valtteri Bottas | 2017-2021 | 101 |
| 4 | George Russell | 2022-present | 86 |
| 5 | Michael Schumacher | 2010-2012 | 58 |
Hamilton was the direct replacement for Schumacher at the start of 2013. By the end of the decade, he too would be a seven-time champion, with Vowles key in all six of his title-winning seasons at Brackley.
James Vowles says Lewis Hamilton is the most talented driver he’s worked with
According to Vowles, Hamilton had the edge when it comes to talent. While Schumacher was clearly supremely gifted as well, he extracted performance in other ways.
Vowles explained that he learned ‘everyone’s name’ and united the team. Not even Hamilton could emulate his leadership qualities.
His former colleague, James Allison, once revealed that Schumacher gave out highly personal Christmas gifts. He saw this as a way to get the most out of his colleagues.
“It’s hard to answer the question,” he said. “Lewis had the most natural talent out of anyone, but the way Michael knew everyone’s name in the team, how he got everyone together, how he drove the team forward, is a unique asset and skill that he held.
“It’s why you can’t really put things in a particular box.”
The weakness that Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher have in common
Hamilton is now trying to emulate Schumacher by winning at Ferrari. The Scuderia have only had one world champion since Die Regenmeister left nearly 20 years ago (Kimi Raikkonen).
Christian Danner believes Hamilton doesn’t ‘understand Italy’ like Schumacher. He’s accused the Briton of trying to transform the team single-handedly, whereas the team’s most successful driver took a collaborative approach.
Hamilton is hoping to end Ferrari’s drought and thereby overtake Schumacher as the sport’s sole eight-time champion. But it would require a spectacular turnaround from here, given that he hasn’t scored a podium in his first 17 Grands Prix.
Surprisingly, given his imperious record, former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo says Schumacher was ‘fragile’ behind the scenes. Hamilton, who has been alarmingly self-critical at times this year, shares that flaw, although perhaps unflinching introspection is necessary for a champion.