Former F1 star turned analyst Ralf Schumacher believes Lewis Hamilton is part of 'an internal power' struggle at Ferrari.

The Sky Sports Germany pundit believes there is 'some sort of infighting going on' at Maranello as the Scuderia's season once again starts to unravel.

A few short weeks ago Hamilton was being hailed as the saviour of Ferrari - he was on the tail of young Italian Kimi Antonelli in the Drivers' standings and had claimed his first victory in red at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.

Fast forward, and that dream of an eighth title has now evaporated amid much speculation that all is not well within the hallowed walls of Maranello.

We have had speculation about the future of team principal Fred Vasseur on the back of questionable strategy calls by the team, and there being no apparent rules of engagement for Hamilton and his team-mate Charles Leclerc.

The saga took a new twist at the Singapore Grand Prix when Hamilton appeared to ignore a call to pit under Virtual Safety Car conditions, and eventually dropped to a final sixth position from third.

Schumacher: 'Things aren't going quite smoothly'

Hamilton would later apologise for his decision, and Schumacher - speaking on the Backstage Boxengasse podcast - fears there are major issues for the sport's most iconic team.

"I think things aren't going quite smoothly between him [Hamilton] and the team; there's a bit of an internal power struggle going on. There's some sort of infighting going on," he claimed.

Lewis is 'trying to overshadow everything and be the boss'

Schumacher claims the 41-year-old Hamilton is trying almost too hard to evolve the team to what he believes is required to make it a winner again.

"Lewis needs to become part of the team. He's trying to overshadow everything and be the boss," Schumacher added.

"I have the feeling that things aren't entirely smooth and harmonious with Fred Vasseur."

While Schumacher believes Hamilton is doing "a superb job on a variety of tracks", he fears the tension inside the camp is undoing all that good work. He also predicts a messy ending to the relationship unless harmony can be achieved.

Hamilton x Ferrari relationship could have a painful end

"If internal competition becomes more important than the brand and the progress of the team, things will eventually get complicated.

"Lewis revels in the media attention, but this is something different; it's not what Ferrari is used to.

"It will lead to someone leaving the team in the end, if things really are as they appear from the outside at the moment. If the harmony isn't there, then Ferrari won't work."