Ralf Schumacher: “Sorry, Lewis Hamilton isn’t entitled to that at Ferrari”

Grand Prix winner Charles Leclerc, World Champion Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur confirmed during the São Paulo Grand Prix that, following the spat in Mexico, a discussion had taken place and the key figures are now putting the whole affair behind them.

During the only clash between Ferrari’s two alpha males at the Brazilian World Championship round, it was striking how much space they gave each other.

With his aggressive driving style, Leclerc annoyed his team-mate Hamilton in Mexico and may well have cost the team a one-two finish. Ferrari had the fastest car in Mexico, but it was Max Verstappen who won.

Lewis Hamilton is uncompromising: he remains of the view that Leclerc plays the rough and tumble more against him than against other rivals. “Look at Singapore – there he was side-by-side with an opponent (it was Max Verstappen, M.B.) and he lifted off the throttle. So that’s quite different. And it was the same with Vettel and with Sainz.”

Hamilton therefore did not waver from his assertion that he was in the right here. But not everyone sees it that way.

Six-time Grand Prix winner Ralf Schumacher, speaking as a Grand Prix expert for Sky, said of Lewis Hamilton’s behaviour: “Lewis Hamilton occupies a position within the team that he is not entitled to. The fact that he then goes on to emphasise once again that he won’t keep quiet and always says what he thinks is problematic. The problem is that, compared to Charles Leclerc, he simply isn’t fast enough. If he were clearly better than his team-mate, this discussion wouldn’t even be taking place. He’s the one causing it himself. It’s relatively simple: always be at the front, drive half a second faster than Charles, win every race or at least finish ahead of him. Then he can make these demands. It’s as simple as that in life.”

I’d go so far as to say: and if Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc then find themselves vying for the same stretch of tarmac again – perhaps in 2027, when it’s not just about a win but the Drivers’ World Championship title – then all hell will break loose once more.