Last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix was a nightmare for Scuderia Ferrari. It began with the two cars clashing on the first lap and Lewis Hamilton dropping down the order, progressed through Charles Leclerc crashing heavily on the second, and ended with Hamilton a frustrated P6 and last of the runners from the big four teams.
After the checkered flag, the seven-times world champion made his feelings clear about a lack of cooperation within the team—especially in the light of his current position ahead of Leclerc in the points, and with Hamilton still a potential challenger for the title. He also noted that the buck stops with team principal Fred Vasseur, and called specifically for rules of engagement to be introduced to keep any fighting between the red cars under control. Inevitably, the Ferrari drivers were in the spotlight in Madrid on Thursday, and neither ducked the issues.
“The rules of engagement?” said Leclerc when asked about the subject. “I think it’s kind of clear that we never want to see a car of the same team in the grass. After reviewing, we spoke with Lewis. I obviously know I went too far in Turn 2, and I said it to Lewis. And I think it’s very clear what we should do—or should avoid—going forward, but I won’t go into much more details of what we’ve said. The only thing I can say is that it definitely did not affect the good relationship that we have, and it will not affect anything going forward. And that is the most important for me, really.”
NurPhoto//Getty Images
Leclerc made it clear that perhaps the situation won’t as bad as it may have looked, with the inevitable fuss around Ferrari at Monza focusing extra attention on what was a relatively minor incident. “Of course, I know we are driving for Ferrari, and if there’s one race where you don’t want that to happen is in Monza, and when these things happens at our home race, then it does a huge mess outside. However, looking the race from outside, there’s been also some friction between other team mates, and the only thing we end up speaking of is Lewis and I—which I don’t think is quite right. But that doesn’t mean we did everything perfect. I didn’t in in Turn 2, and that I’ve been straight away very clear with Lewis after reviewing the images.”
He did not want to elaborate too much on what was said between the pair, other than stressing it’s all okay now. “I think the most important is that we clarified the situation. We talked. I told Lewis how I felt. Lewis told me what he felt. And I think we fully agree with both of our views in hindsight when we speak without the emotions of the race. It happens. It’s not the last time that will happen, I’m sure, because it’s the kind of things that happen in racing, particularly when we are starting so close to each other so often. But surely it’s not a situation that we want to find ourselves in again. And that is very clear for Lewis, and for myself.”
So what of Hamilton? He agreed that the Monza first lap had been talked through and sorted out with Leclerc, and noted that he’d had a dialogue with Vasseur about how things can be done better. “It’s been really positive,” he said. “I spoke to Fred on Monday, and we just had a clearing-out discussion. Naturally, we’re always going to have different opinions, but at the end of the day, we come together and we find a way forwards, and I think that’s the positives of where we got to over the past 15 months or whatever it is. Got to a place where we have really great communication internally, and same with me and Charles.”
David Davies – PA Images//Getty Images
However, asked by Road & Track if the rules of engagement he wants to see had been discussed, he said there hadn’t been time: “Right now, I’m just trying to focus on having a better weekend this weekend. I’m sure at some stage we’ll discuss how we can be better. We’ve not had a lot of time to just turn around. You can’t change things in two days.”
It’s not just about the on-track battling between drivers, as there’s been an ongoing push by Hamilton to change the way the team operates in many areas. “I think it’s a longer-term process,” he said. “It’s not something we can just change into this weekend. There’s a huge amount of moving parts, there’s a lot of people. There’s a culture that’s been there for a long, long time, and moving big pieces is not so easy. And so we just take it one step at a time, and it starts with discussing it. It starts with the acknowledgement, which internally we have, and so then it just comes to, like, working out the solutions together. And it just doesn’t happen overnight. We’ll probably try things and it still won’t be good, but we’ll eventually get there, to the point we need.”
Crucially, what he has done is clear the air with Leclerc. The Monegasque driver is a tough cookie on track, and at times a little emotional; off it, he is a genuinely nice guy, and not someone who was willing to let any tension linger. “I think what’s great is that there was no shying away from having a discussion,” said Hamilton. “We sat face to face, just him and I, and talked about it, and we were just both open and honest. And we squashed it, and we can move on. And I think that shows the maturity from him, and I think it’s healthier. It’s a relationship we have built over time. Of course, there’s going to be frustrations, and I’m sure there’ll be more times we are close because we’re very close in pace, we both want to win just as much as each other, and we both want to do well for the team as well. But yeah, I think it’s a real positive.”