Ferrari seek reset after costly Hamilton-Leclerc clash
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Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc in action at the start of the Mexican Grand Prix on Nov 1. An opening-lap incident allowed Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to win the race.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Ferrari held talks after Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc clashed in Mexico City, which cost the team a possible one-two finish.
- Frederic Vasseur said both drivers have moved on, but they must respect each other, the team, and Ferrari’s rules.
- Toto Wolff called it a “deja vu” and said such hard clashes can help make a point, like Hamilton’s Mercedes rivalry with Nico Rosberg.
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SAO PAULO – Ferrari held talks to clear the air after a costly clash between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc at last weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix, with team principal Frederic Vasseur saying the pair had now moved on and turned their focus to the Sao Paulo race.
The meeting followed Hamilton’s public criticism of the opening-lap incident, which derailed Ferrari’s hopes of a one-two finish, with the Briton saying again on Nov 5 that he remained frustrated by what had happened.
“We did it yesterday evening,” Vasseur told reporters at Interlagos on Nov 6. “It was good to discuss, good to clarify my position and their position. It was good to do, and now we turn the page and we are focusing on the next one.”
Leclerc, who became a father this week, arrived in Brazil on Nov 5 but missed the first practice session, with youngster Dino Beganovic standing in for the Monegasque.
Hamilton started from pole in Mexico, but lost out after a battle with Leclerc through the opening corners forced both Ferraris off track, allowing race winner Max Verstappen to take advantage.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton said after the race that it was difficult when a “teammate works against you” and suggested Ferrari needed to revisit how their drivers raced one another.
Vasseur said the team’s expectations had not changed despite the flare-up.
“The guidelines are still the same,” he said.
“They need to respect each other. They are two competitors with the fighting spirit for sure, but they need to have respect for the other one. But mainly, they need to respect the brand, the team.”
Vasseur also dismissed suggestions that differences in personality between Hamilton and Leclerc posed a broader problem for the Maranello-based team.
“We have two experienced guys, two competitive guys... It’s a choice in the line-up. I have the positive and the negative. I will deal with the negative.
“I’m not asking them to be best friends. I think it’s even probably a bit negative. I’m just asking them to act and to work as professionals,” he added.
The situation prompted a familiar reaction from Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who likened the episode to the intense rivalry between Hamilton and Nico Rosberg during Mercedes’ title-dominating years in the 2010s.
“Fred here doesn’t need any advice from me, but it’s like a deja vu,” Wolff said.
“Sometimes, it needs the really tough ones, like the last one, to make a point.” REUTERS