Ferrari tells Hamilton and Leclerc to put team first after Mexico clash

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has told Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to respect each other after their race incident in Mexico last weekend, Sportstar reported.

Vasseur said he had held talks with both drivers on Thursday evening in Sao Paulo, and speaking to the media for the first time since last weekend, he was adamant the message to both of his drivers was loud and clear. Ferrari must always come first.

What happened in Mexico

The opening lap incident at the Mexico City Grand Prix started when Leclerc raced pole-sitter Hamilton wheel to wheel outside Turn 4. Both ran off the track; Hamilton lost a position to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Leclerc cut through the grass and took the lead.

Verstappen ultimately won, Hamilton was second and Leclerc was fourth after receiving a five-second penalty. The sabre-rattling on lap one robbed Ferrari of a possible third win of the campaign.

Hamilton was particularly furious about how Leclerc had raced him at the start, lobbying for the stewards to hand his team-mate a bigger penalty for cutting the track.

Vasseur’s response

Vasseur said there was no contact between the two cars and it isn’t always like that with two teammates. He revealed that the drivers spoke on Thursday evening in Sao Paulo, but refused to give details of the conversation.

“It was good to talk and clear my position and their positions,” Vasseur said. He added that certainly it wasn’t a good maneuver because when you have a 1-2 you expect to finish in a 1-2, and that did not happen.

The message is still the same; they need to respect each other. They are two competitors, with fighting spirit, but they need to have respect for each other.

But mainly and firstly, they need to respect the brand, the team, the people working at home, the people working on track.

Ferrari’s French boss said for sure, in this situation, they failed collectively because they were one and two and they didn’t win the race at the end. That means that it’s clear that they failed and they have to react.

Pointing fingers would be a big mistake.

Hamilton’s reaction and Wolff’s comparison

On Thursday, Hamilton told journalists he was still frustrated with the situation in Mexico. The seven-time world champion demanded serious talks with Leclerc and Vasseur over how hard his team-mate was racing him.

Hamilton said he agreed with suggestions that Leclerc was racing him harder than he raced other drivers.

Vasseur pointed towards Leclerc’s aggressive overtake on Verstappen in Austin to downplay those claims, saying everybody said it was magic and the line is fine between the two, but he didn’t crash into the other car.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said in the same press conference he empathized with his Ferrari colleague; for years there were similar situations between Hamilton and then teammate Nico Rosberg. “Fred doesn’t need any advice from me, but it’s like a déjà vu,” Wolff said.

“You’ve asked me exactly the same questions for how many years ... 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. That was it, and then Nico called it a day. Four years, exactly the same situation.

When there was an accident between Hamilton and Rosberg, it was understood that that was the limit and that it wouldn’t continue like this. That’s why maybe it needed to escalate to that point because it’s all about respect to the team.

Championship context and what happens next

Hamilton was third in the championship with 259 points and Leclerc was fifth with 245. Ferrari was second in the constructors’ championship, well behind leader Mercedes. Vasseur said the meeting had turned the page and Ferrari was focused on the next race.

He said the message to both drivers was clear and would stay clear. Ferrari must always come first for the brand, the team and the people working at home and on track.

Mexico City Grand Prix result and championship positions

Related on Apex Sports News

• Leclerc receives five-second penalty for Mexico GP overtake

• Piastri out of Mexico GP points after post-race penalty for Lindblad clash

• Mercedes takes blame for Russell's poor Mexico GP: We let him down

Sources

• Sportstar

• Autosport

• Photo: Liauzh, CC BY 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons)