Hamilton sets Ferrari on fire: “There are no rules here. At Mercedes we had written fighting rules”
Lewis Hamilton It exploded again. Perhaps today he will ask for forgiveness again, as he already did when he raised his voice in Zandvoort two weeks ago. And yesterday, the Briton did not hesitate after a weekend in which everything happened.
On Saturday, Leclerc he did not slip in classification and hamilton clarified that the time had come for the team to focus on a driver in the fight for the crown, taking advantage of the fact that it is ahead of the Monegasque in the World.
And a day later, the situation ended in flames. Leclerc and Hamilton They met at the exit, touched each other and Lewis stepped on the gravel. The Englishman was too optimistic when attacking Charles inside turn 1, entering a dead end, where there would be no space to make the second turn on the outside. And he ended up paying for it. And in fact, Leclerc placed most of the blame on Lewis. But the 7-time champion did not agree. Charles said “we went too far” and Hamilton he responded.
“I was ahead into Turn 2. By the time I reached the apex, I was already ahead. So there was no ‘we went’ to it.”he said ironically.
He is not worried that the ‘tifosi’ think he drives “dirty”
“I don’t ride dirty. I’ve always raced clean, and I’ve always left space. So I don’t think they should worry about me,” he said when asked if the fans could consider that he rides dirty.
“I have come to the team and I have tried to respect the space, and, of course, not put the team in danger. I remain firm in that and that is all I can say, for my part. For the other part, you will have to talk to Fred (Vasseur, his boss),” he noted, sending a dart to his boss.
I have tried to respect the space, and, of course, not endanger the team. I stand by that and that’s all I can say, for my part. For the other part, you will have to talk to Fred
Hamilton believes that Vasseur had to give orders and prioritize him in the fight for the title earlier and that the wheel-to-wheel fights between teammates should have stopped earlier. “It’s too late for that. It’s many, many weeks late. So all I can do is try to do my best,” he said.
“It’s too late for that. It’s many, many weeks late.”
Ask for written rules
But it didn’t stop there. In a longer than usual press appearance, in which Hamilton clearly wanted to explain himself, he once again referred to the priority that the team should give him for the title, ensuring that it was not a question of removing Charles, but of establishing rules to avoid face-to-face matches in which the two would lose.
At Mercedes we had written fighting rules. We never had serious problems. There was a moment, maybe between Rosberg and me… but most of the time it went well
“I think it comes down to the rules of engagement. At Mercedes we had written rules of engagement. We never had any serious problems. There was a moment, maybe between Rosberg and me, a couple of times. But most of the time it went well, especially with Bottas. There are no rules here.”he expressed.
In that sense, he was also asked about the many points that the team had lost due to operational failures, as occurred in Zandvoort or the fact of not receiving a slipstream in qualifying on Saturday.
“Ultimately, everything comes from the top. Decisions trickle down, so it all starts with Fred. There is a limit to what you can say, what you can insist on and shout from the rooftops. Yesterday (Saturday) I said that we have to analyze how we communicate, because if we continue down the same path, we will get the same result,” he reflected.
“We have to change things because this is not helping us move forward. I think they are open to it and we will talk about it privately.” during the next… probably not next week, but yes, above all, after the next race (after Madrid), to try to see how we can change the procedure of things so that the same thing does not continue to happen,” he noted, with statements that will not have sat well with the Ferrari leadership.
Vasseur responds
Frédéric Vasseur, Ferrari Team Principal, said after Lewis Hamilton’s words that he had not spoken to Lewis about the contact with Leclerc at the start and that he had only been able to chat for “two seconds” with the Englishman.
“I prefer to talk to them first than to you,” he commented.
He did refer to Hamilton’s request to establish a leader to focus on and prioritize in the fight for the title.
“To see if we have team orders or whatever, I think the good comparison I made was that last year, Oscar Piastri was leading the World Championship for McLaren at this stage of the season and if McLaren had bet everything on Piastri, Max Verstappen would have been champion,” he recalled.
It was too early to make a decision before Monza. Now we have time to talk to the kids.
“But, without a doubt, there comes a time when a decision has to be made. However, I think it was too early to make a decision before Monza. Now we have time to talk about it with the boys,” he said.
Lewis Hamilton is 76 points behind the F1 World Championship leader, Kimi Antonelli, while Charles Leclerc is already 112 after his retirement due to the accident he suffered a few laps after his contact with Lewis.
