Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were not on the best of terms after their tussle in Mexico last week, but the Brit has issued an important update on dialogue between the two.
Hamilton and Leclerc were involved in a highly contentious first-lap battle for the lead in the Mexico City Grand Prix, which saw Hamilton lose position and Leclrec slapped with a five-second time penalty.
The combination of both eventualities saw Ferrari miss out on its best chance of a Grand Prix victory for some time, leaving Hamilton seething.
With Hamilton questioning Leclerc’s mentality and his willingness to race his teammates harder than his rivals, the Monegasque has had his mind elsewhere, welcoming his firstborn child earlier this week with wife Alexandra.
The seven-time World Champion was keen for “serious conversations” with the Scuderia, whose Team Principal, Fred Vasseur, was equally as angry, believing the team should come first, echoing Hamilton’s sentiments.
Its Sao Paulo Grand Prix weekend is set to be a tough one, with Leclerc taking a 10-place grid penalty for an ICE change, with Hamilton starting at the back due to a total PU change.
Despite there not being any sunshine on the horizon at Interlagos after a rain-sodden qualifying session, some good news for the Maranello-based squad was.
Speaking afterwards, Hamilton, when asked if he had had any ‘clear the air’ talks headed by Vasseur, revealed the Frenchman had not particularly been involved, but reached a major conclusion with Leclerc.
“I mean, Fred hasn’t cleared the air, in the sense of like me and Charles,” he told Sky Sports F1. “We sat and spoke, and we squashed it, and we’re moving on.
“I think we still have a huge amount of respect for each other, and I’m glad we had a chat. Now we move on. And we’ve been getting along just fine as normal, so sometimes, in those scenarios, it just takes having a conversation.
“And there’s been no demands from either side. It’s just been both giving our points and areas that we can do better and support each other.
“So I’m hoping to have a better race this week, of course.”
Relief all-round for the team back in Italy, but the proof will be in the pudding in the remaining rounds if Hamilton and Leclerc can work together to ensure Ferrari can secure P2 in the Constructors’ title.
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