He’d rather make life difficult for his team-mate than Verstappen: Hamilton baffled by Leclerc’s approach

In motorsport, they say your team-mate is the first rival you have to beat. But Lewis Hamilton agrees that Charles Leclerc is taking that rather too far. Even after all these years, the Monegasque has not changed; paradoxically, it is his own team-mates who have the toughest time racing him.

Charles Leclerc was absent from the circuit on Thursday following the birth of his daughter Bianca, as he wanted to spend as much time as possible with his family. He only arrived in Brazil after Thursday’s programme had ended, reportedly on the same flight as team principal Frédéric Vasseur. That left just one of the Scuderia’s drivers facing the media.

Lewis Hamilton was asked, among other things, whether he too had noticed that Leclerc races his own team-mates harder than drivers from rival teams. “Yes. I see what you see. In Singapore, he was fully on the inside into Turn 1, he had won the lead, and he backed off,” he said, recalling Leclerc’s tentative move on Max Verstappen.

His battles with Hamilton, by contrast, resemble a gladiatorial fight to the death. “It was definitely different. But I mean, if you look at the team-mates, it was the same with Sebastian [Vettel]. It was the same with Carlos [Sainz].”

That is exactly what Hamilton wants to discuss. The first meeting on the subject is due to take place at the circuit as early as Friday. Perhaps it will help ease the frustration Hamilton has built up over recent weeks.

“Naturally I was frustrated, and I’m still frustrated,” admitted the seven-time champion. “So, conversations need to be had. We will have those when the time permits. We had an opportunity to win for the team. The team has done such an amazing job in bringing upgrades this year and I think they’ve done an incredible job. We’ve scored more points than any other team in the last three or four races. We could have easily had a one-two, so we definitely have to work towards making sure that doesn’t happen again.”

Not everyone approves of Hamilton’s approach, however. German pundit Ralf Schumacher was among those to criticise the experienced Briton, whose angry radio messages reminded him of Al Capone. He also took issue with Hamilton demanding a harsher penalty for his own team-mate.

But he insisted that such criticism would not stop him trying to turn Ferrari into a championship-winning team. “I don’t really care how everyone feels about what I’ve said. I wear my heart on my sleeve, and I say how I feel in the moment,” he said, explaining his anger over the radio. “I did see something that someone was saying that the things that I’m saying are calculated, and I just want to combat that with the fact that when you’re in the race, your heart rate is like 170. You’re driving 200 miles an hour. You don’t have time to be calculated in what you’re saying and thinking about what the media are going to write about, you don’t think about that.”

“Of course, there’s some times you say things and maybe you might regret it afterwards, but I don’t, and I’m never going to apologise for being authentic and real. I’m not going be silenced. I’ve never ever been silenced. I have not been asked to not say anything [by the team], and that’s just the way it is,” he declared.

Beyond Schumacher, Leclerc himself also appears to have a problem with Hamilton’s approach. After all, the Monegasque may feel that the new arrival is trying to take away his position as leader of the team he has spent years helping to build.

“He’s been here a long time. Eight years and had nine wins with the team,” remarked Hamilton, in what sounded like a rather pointed comment. “He is very much embedded within the team, and I know that it would always be a challenge. I’ve always respected that, and I’ve approached the team and really worked hard to build a good relationship with Charles and bridge the gap and make sure that we’re harmonious and work hard together. Always tried to be respectful.”

But when something is not working, it needs to change. Hamilton wants to leave no stone unturned at Ferrari. After almost 20 years without a title, the team needs fresh impetus, but not everyone is comfortable with change. “Naturally, it’s not so easy having someone like me come into a team, because I’m very outspoken and I push and push and push. Push for so many changes,” he added. “And I’m going to be pushing for more. And as long as I’m here, that’s how it’s going to be.”

“I’m here to win, and to be able to win, you have to work with everyone around you. You have to push, and I have to push. I have to be pushed also to elevate. We can all always elevate and be better, and I truly believe that this team can be fighting for the championship next year,” he said, ending the interview on a positive note.