Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur will gather his Formula 1 drivers in Brazil to discuss their costly first-round dice in Mexico, as Lewis Hamilton vows: ‘I will never be silenced’.
Charles Leclerc and Hamilton fought hard during the opening round in Mexico, allowing Max Verstappen to steal what Ferrari thought was a likely victory.
Hamilton questioned Leclerc’s talent after the race, saying he had a “do or die” mentality and had a long history of fighting too hard with his teammates.
Ferrari felt its battle had crossed the line with team boss Vasseur. declared on Sunday evening on Canal+ that this was proof of a “lack of respect” towards Ferrari employees.
La Course understands that Vasseur plans to bring Hamilton and Leclerc together on Friday in Brazil to discuss the matter.
Vasseur spoke to both drivers individually after the race in Mexico, but he planned a real discussion for Brazil when they are all in the same place.
Leclerc missed Thursday’s media day in Brazil after announcing the birth of his and his wife Alexandra’s child on Wednesday, so a meeting earlier in the weekend in Brazil was not possible.
In Leclerc’s absence, only Hamilton faced the media on Thursday, where he doubled down on his criticism of Leclerc.
Asked if he agreed that Leclerc was driving him harder than the other drivers, with the example of Leclerc giving up on overtaking Max Verstappen at the start in Singapore used as a comparison, Hamilton replied “Yes”.
He added: “I can tell what you see. In Singapore he was all wheel to wheel, all the way inside, he had taken the lead in Turn 1 in Singapore and rolled back.”
“Certainly (the races) are different. If you look at the teammates, it’s the same with Sebastian (Vettel), it’s the same with Carlos (Sainz).”
Hamilton made it clear he was not going to change his outspoken approach, including on team radio when he asked whether Leclerc had been penalized on the first lap for cutting the track.
“How were my comments taken into account? I don’t know. I don’t care what anyone thinks about what I said,” Hamilton added.
“I wear my heart on my sleeve and I say what I feel in the moment. I think of one thing that I would like… I saw something, someone said it was calculated, the things that I say.
“I just want to combat that with the fact that when you’re racing, your heart rate is about 170 (beats per minute). You’re driving 200 miles an hour. You don’t have time to calculate what you’re saying and think about what you’re saying to the media. You don’t think about it.
“Usually your frustration is expressed towards the team members, especially the bosses regarding decisions. And also the stewards have always asked us to express it when we have it… If there is a problem on the track, for example. You are delayed, you are blocked, they ask you to express it.
“An example is, if you look in Mexico, in one of the testing sessions, (Isack) Hadjar backed off the racing line in turn 1, I didn’t say anything. They didn’t look into it. If I had spoken, like raising my hands in the air, for example, they would have investigated and he would have received a penalty, because it was a nuisance.
“So it’s important to make sure that you’re open. Of course, there are times when you say things and maybe you might regret it afterwards, but that’s not the case for me. I will never apologize for being authentic and real. I will never be silenced.
“I wasn’t asked not to say anything. And that’s how it is.”
Hamilton says he has “really worked hard to build a good relationship with Charles”, knowing that Leclerc is “very integrated within the team” after eight years behind the wheel for Ferrari.
“I’ve always tried to be respectful,” Hamilton said.
“Naturally, it’s not that easy to have someone like me on a team because I’m very outspoken and I push and I push and I push, I push for so many changes. And I’m going to push for more. And as long as I’m here, it’s going to be like that. I’m here to win. To be able to win, you have to work with everyone around you.”
Hamilton’s approach to the meeting
Hamilton insists he “fully understands my responsibility to the team” and said he “always tries to show them my appreciation and my best to help move the team forward and I feel like I’ve played a big part in where our team is right now, which is positive.”
He said they “didn’t have time to sit down face to face because Fred is back in Maranello and Charles is back in Monaco.
“But we will have a meeting. I don’t think everything is going to be crushed and resolved in one meeting. But it’s important.
“What we build now will put us in the right position for next year. And in a way, I’m happy that we had this experience. Of course, I would have preferred to win and be 1-2. But from this you can learn.
“I really believe that next year we can challenge for the world championships. That’s the only goal. So at the moment, in the background, I’m focused on continuing the performance we’ve gained in the last few races in terms of execution, and then working on next year’s car.”
“I obviously can’t do anything with the engine other than just push them and they’ll keep pushing in the background, I believe that’s the case. With the car, he steers it, makes sure we’re heading it in the right direction. Makes sure we come into next year on the right foot. Then Fred’s job is to make sure we’re all headed in the same direction.”
“Of course we’re going to race hard. But in a fair way and making sure we get the most out of it.”
Hamilton backed Vasseur, saying “I still believe Fred is the right person to lead us to the championship”.
When asked what he wants moving forward: “I think it’s a question of communication. It’s a question of understanding.
“I don’t really know yet. I’ve been trying to think about what the meeting would be like, how it would go. I never know.
“But what I will do is make sure that I am always authentically myself. I will not shy away from responsibility for the role that I play and the decisions that I make for the team. And I will just keep pushing.”
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