Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur questioned the fairness of the five-second time penalty handed to Lewis Hamilton following his first-lap clash with George Russell in the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix.
The collision between Hamilton and his former Mercedes team-mate occurred in the opening exchanges at Spa-Francorchamps, with stewards ultimately determining that Hamilton bore enough responsibility to warrant a time penalty.
This was despite acknowledging mitigating factors that had left the Ferrari driver with little room to avoid contact. Those circumstances, the stewards noted, were enough to spare Hamilton a harsher sanction than the five seconds applied.
Speaking to media, including Motorsport Week, Vasseur made clear he felt the outcome was inconsistent with the governing body’s usual approach to opening-lap incidents, which are typically waved off as unavoidable racing contact rather than penalised, citing “all of the incidents of Lap 1 were considered as racing incidents.”
“And on this one, Russell had far enough space to not close on the right and go on the left,” the Frenchman added.
“At the end of the day, it’s not me with the decision.”
Lewis Hamilton not to blame for Ferrari pit error
Compounding Hamilton’s afternoon, the drama continued into the pits. Serving his penalty during a pit stop that also involved a front wing adjustment, Hamilton made contact with a mechanic while exiting his box, an incident that drew a separate fine for Ferrari.
Vasseur was quick to shift blame away from his driver, explaining that the complication stemmed from the team’s reluctance to communicate over the radio mid-penalty for fear of prompting the crew to react prematurely and approach the car while the time penalty was still being served.
In Vasseur’s telling, the mix-up was a product of procedure rather than any error on Hamilton’s part.
“The confusion came from the fact that we had a double pit stop, and the front wing adjustment just for the second, and we didn’t want to speak during the five seconds,” he said.
“If we start to speak, the mechanics could have jumped on the car. It’s not the mistake of Lewis.”
The episode adds another layer to what has already been a chaotic weekend at Spa, with Charles Leclerc taking second place, having lost the lead to Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the closing 10 laps, the Mercedes package being too strong.
But Hamilton cemented second in the Drivers’ standings with Russell’s DNF, heading into this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix, the last race before F1’s summer break.
READ MORE – Motorsport Week’s 2026 F1 Belgian GP Driver Ratings
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