Former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says Ferrari are “way off” going into this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.

Ferrari had a nightmare race in Zandvoort after Lewis Hamilton crashed and Charles Leclerc was hit by Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and also retired.

Post-race, Hamilton was given a five-grid place penalty for this Sunday’s race in Monza for failing to slow sufficiently under double-waved yellow flags on the reconnaissance laps to the grid in Zandvoort.

Ferrari traditionally perform strongly at the Italian Grand Prix, even in seasons when they are not competing for the championship but Villeneuve is unsure this time around.

“Normally they have a special engine, special car, but I don’t expect that this year,” he said on Sky Sports F1’s latest episode of The F1 Show podcast.

“They are way off. The car is not working. Normally the car is kind of working. It’s in the battle and then they get a little extra for Monza. A little extra won’t cut it right now.”

There has been plenty of attention surrounding Hamilton’s struggles in his first season at Ferrari but team-mate Leclerc has also increasingly shown his frustration.

Leclerc questioned whether Ferrari needed to pit for a second time in Zandvoort, which provided Antonelli the opportunity to attack at the banked Turn 3, where the pair collided.

Villeneuve said: “Charles is frustrated because he’s probably starting to understand that he will never be world champion. It’s gone bad, it’s gotten worse.

“Next year is a whole new set of regulations and normally that’s not when Ferrari is at its best, so it’s a difficult situation for him.

“He’s been there for a long time and his star has fallen a little bit. At least Lewis can rely on the fact that he’s a multiple world champion so it doesn’t matter if the star falls a little bit. He will always be that big global star anyway, that goes beyond F1.

“They might finish second in the Constructors’ Championship, but they actually are the fourth horse. They are simply lucky that in Red Bull, there’s only one driver scoring points and the same thing with Mercedes.”

Vasseur: Hamilton’s confidence is back

Speaking before Hamilton’s grid penalty was announced, Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur tried to see the positives from Zandvoort.

Hamilton had described himself as “useless” amid his struggles in Hungary at the final round before the break, but said upon arriving in Zandvoort that he was focused on “getting back to enjoying” racing.

The 40-year-old was at least able to take some solace from the fact he was closer to his team-mate Leclerc in terms of general pace throughout the weekend and reached Q3 for the first time since the British Grand Prix in early July.

“Overall, the reaction from Lewis was good. It was a good recovery after two tough races before the break. But for sure, this was not what we expected,” said Vasseur.

“This has been a lot more positive than the last four or five races. It was much better than what he did in the last race in Budapest. I could see the confidence was back and it was good preparation [for the Italian Grand Prix].”

Hamilton added: “There’s obviously a huge amount of pressure on us as a team [in Monza], and then more so on me now because I haven’t had a good season.

“We will just try to absorb all the energy from the fans.”

Sky Sports F1’s Italian GP Schedule

Thursday September 4
2pm: Drivers’ Press Conference

Friday September 5
8.30am: F3 Practice
9.55am: F2 Practice
12pm: Italian Grand Prix Practice One (session starts at 12:30pm)*
1.55pm: F3 Qualifying
2.50pm: F2 Qualifying
3.35pm: Italian Grand Prix Practice Two (session starts at 4pm)
5.15pm: The F1 Show

Saturday September 6
8.10am: F3 Sprint
11.15am: Italian Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 11:30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.15pm: Italian Grand Prix Qualifying build-up
3pm: ITALIAN GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*
5pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook

Sunday September 7
7.10am: F3 Feature Race
8.40am: F2 Feature Race
10.40am: Porsche Supercup Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Italian GP build-up
2pm: THE ITALIAN GRAND PRIX*
4pm: Chequered Flag: Italian GP reaction
5pm: Ted’s Notebook

*also on Sky Sports Main Event

The 2025 Formula 1 season continues this weekend with the Italian Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton makes his first appearance at Monza for Ferrari, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime