Guenther Steiner's Bold Take on Ferrari's Title Strategy

Guenther Steiner has never been shy of an opinion, and he’s not starting now. In his view, if Ferrari are serious about fighting for the 2026 Formula 1 world championship, there’s only one logical course of action: make Lewis Hamilton the undisputed number one and be explicit about it.

“Put your money on the guy with the better chance”

The debate flared after the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, where Ferrari’s race unraveled into an awkward intra-team stand-off. Hamilton, on fresher tyres and clearly quicker, sat bottled up behind Charles Leclerc as strategy calls diverged and tempers frayed on the radio.

The minutes lost in that traffic jam mattered. So did the message it sent.

Speaking on The Red Flags Podcast, former Haas team principal Steiner argued that Ferrari’s problem wasn’t simply the in-race calls, but the lack of a firm plan before the lights went out.

"You cannot implement team orders during a race," he said. "You need to agree them beforehand."

For Steiner, the logic is brutal but simple. The title picture, the points table, the cold math of a long season — all of it points in one direction.

"The realistic thing is, can Charles really win the world championship? Maybe not. And who is in front? Lewis," he said. "I haven't done the calculations of how realistic it is for him to win the world championship, but if one of the two can win, it is Lewis."

The implication is clear: Ferrari cannot afford to treat Hamilton and Leclerc as equals once the championship fight tightens. Not if they want to stay in it.

"You need to put your money on the guy who has got the better chance," Steiner continued. "That's the guy in front, who has got more points, and that is the only selling point to Charles. 'Hey buddy, your team-mate has done better up to now. Now he's number one.'

It’s a ruthless message, the kind title-winning teams have delivered for decades.

Vasseur’s call, not Elkann’s

Steiner also drew a sharp line over who must take responsibility for that conversation. For him, this isn’t a matter for boardrooms or distant owners. It’s a racing call, and it belongs on the pit wall.

"Fred, that is his job," Steiner said of team principal Fred Vasseur. "I don't think John Elkann should or would get involved in it because if he gets involved in that one at that stage, he needs to run the team."

In other words, if Ferrari want to function like a modern, sharp-edged title operation, the power and accountability have to sit clearly with Vasseur.

"But I think Fred is very much in control of it because Fred needs to win a world championship," Steiner added.

That is the heart of it. Ferrari did not bring Hamilton to Maranello to play the long game or to indulge in a delicate balancing act between two equal stars. They brought him to end a drought.

The question now is whether they are prepared to make the hard call that usually comes with that ambition.