Hamilton blasted as a “spoiled child” by ex-F1 team manager

The brash claims were made by Joan Villadelprat, the ex-team manager of Benetton, who also held other roles at McLaren, Ferrari, Tyrell and Prost Grand Prix.

The 2023 season is set to resume at the F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix this weekend where Hamilton is hoping that Mercedes can address his concerns with upgrades that advance their ambitions.

“Hamilton is fed up,” Villadelprat told El Confidencial. 

“And if he doesn't win he's like a spoiled little child: either you win or you break the toy. 

“He's a whiner. The tyre, the strategy, questions everything. 

“When you have a [teammate] who is faster than you, it is normal to be quiet and put your head under your wing. 

“I don't think he has lost but, after seven titles... What motivates you? Well, win another. 

“And you're not going to risk your skin if you don't have that car. 

“What is evident is that Hamilton is not the same as his first or second championship.”

Fernando Alonso came in for major praise from his Spanish compatriot Villadelprat, after his great start to life at Aston Martin.

Comparisons were made between Hamilton and Alonso.

He said: “One has won seven, and the other two, and Fernando knows he could have won more, that he has the potential to be ahead of Hamilton.

“Only Fernando's choices weren't right and Hamilton was right. 

“But the desire that Fernando has... Best of all, now people recognise him, Formula 1, other drivers, recognise him as a phenomenon. 

“If Ferdinando had not returned, his story would have been forgotten with a title or two. 

“But being in Formula 1, at his age, at the moment he has a good car, to take out what he is getting, how he is physically, huge, mentally he is brutal. 

“When Fernando beats a driver, he is happy that he is the one who wins.”

The struggles of Mercedes this season were underlined in the first race when Aston Martin, their customer team, demoted them down the pecking order.

“What is overwhelming is that they have made a better car than the official one,” Villadelprat said.

However, last time out in Australia, Hamilton finished as runner-up to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and will be hoping that Mercedes are finally on the correct path to majorly improving his machinery.