Fred Vasseur Downplays Lewis Hamilton-Charles Leclerc Conflict as ‘Accumulated Frustration’

Scuderia Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has downplayed the Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc conflict, putting it down to ‘accumulated frustration’. The Frenchman claimed that the two drivers have been starting most races next to each other in recent weeks, and always seem to be racing each other, leading to some agitation.

Revealing that all the relevant parties held a discussion during the weekend in Brazil, Vasseur said during the press conference on Friday:

“The guidelines are still the same. I think they accumulated perhaps a bit of frustration, because they are starting each weekend side-by-side, and you have a kind of accumulation effect. But at the end of the day, the guidelines are always the same: 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 and firstly, they need to respect the brand, the team, the people working at home, the people working on track.”

Hamilton had also reiterated the same message in Mexico after the race, and then again in Brazil, saying that he respects Ferrari and the people working in the background at Maranello. He explained that he has the utmost respect for the Italian team.

This came after Vasseur had accused his drivers of disrespecting the brand following their on-track battle at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Fred Vasseur Reflects on Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc’s Ability To Race Against Each Other

Vasseur has defended Hamilton and Leclerc, saying that the two can race against each other, pointing to the fact that they did not even make contact at the Mexican GP. He added that while the situation could have been avoided, Ferrari still managed to score the most points of any team in Mexico City last week.

When asked why his two drivers are unable to race each other without issues, Vasseur replied:

“‘Unable’ is a bit harsh. I didn’t see a contact between the two cars also, and it’s taking proportion, huge proportion, because we were one-two, but there was no contact between cars. It’s not always like this between two teammates.

“For sure, it’s not a good move, because when you are one-two, you are expecting to stay one-two, and we didn’t. On the top, we took the penalty and didn’t win the race. But overall, we still scored the highest number of points on the weekend.”

Vasseur added that he still would have preferred to have the race win, but reiterated that it was still a good result for Ferrari on paper in Mexico.

Fred Vasseur Admits Lewis Hamilton-Charles Leclerc the ‘Most Challenging’ Set of Teammates He Has Managed

Vasseur also admitted that Hamilton and Leclerc are the most challenging set of teammates he has ever managed in F1, as both are experienced and competitive. But he also added that Ferrari is second in the constructors’ championship thanks to two drivers who are very close to each other in pace.

“For sure, we have two experienced guys, two competitive guys. Now, it’s four or five races in a row that we are at the front, scoring the highest number of points after Monza-Madrid,” Vasseur replied when asked if Hamilton and Leclerc were the toughest teammates he has ever managed.

“For sure, you have a kind of escalation that you all want to win races, and I think it’s probably the downside of the system is that we have two competitive guys starting each weekend next to each other. But I think if we are P2 today, it’s also because we have two guys very, very close, and we have to manage it, but it’s a choice with the lineup,” he added.

Vasseur added that there are both positives and negatives to having two close teammates, and that he will manage the negatives while he is the team principal.

Hamilton is currently third in the drivers’ standings with 259 points to his name, while Leclerc is fifth with 245 points, only 14 behind.

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