Lewis Hamilton “9am on morning of the race” Ferrari meeting exposed

A last-gasp meeting with his Ferrari boss was initiated by Lewis Hamilton just hours before the F1 Miami Grand Prix.

Hamilton had qualified 12th, with teammate Charles Leclerc eighth, a day earlier.

The Ferrari drivers’ concerns were aired to team principal Fred Vasseur at breakfast time in the Miami paddock before the grand prix.

But the atmosphere within the Ferrari garage is still harmonious, claims L’Equipe journalist Fred Ferret.

“100%, and I am not bull****** you,” he told the F1 Nation podcast.

“They are very calm and they want to improve.

“Charles is very upset when he says he can’t be eighth on the grid because he’s a Ferrari driver and he wants to win.

“Lewis went to speak with Fred, while we were having a coffee, and said: ‘I want to speak with you about the tyres’.

“It was 9am on the morning of the race. He wasn’t complaining. He was trying to help.

“There is not, at all, a problem.

“We heard Lewis speak tough on Bono when they had problems.

“It’s easy for journalists to write ‘Ferrari, big problems’. It’s more complicated than that.”

Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari No 1 problem identified

Hamilton had achieved a podium finish in the sprint race in Miami, following victory in the previous sprint in China.

But those two standout moments are in stark contrast to the rest of his first campaign with Ferrari so far.

He finished eighth in the Miami Grand Prix, a place behind Leclerc. Their woes compared to McLaren, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes continued.

Hamilton raised eyebrows with tense radio exchanges with race engineer Riccardo Adami.

“The whole mess that we see is because of the radio chat which was tough,” Ferret continued.

“At Ferrari it has always been like that. Remember in China, Sebastian Vettel was exactly the same, with the same result.

“There are two big drivers competing at a high level and they want to be in front of the other, there is no way to avoid that.

“It’s easier if you have Kimi Antonelli, he won’t complain against Geoge Russell if he’s following.

“Max Verstappen is alone. And you already saw, between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, that there are some tough battles.

“Lewis said there are no problems, it was just adrenaline.”

But the true problem facing Ferrari is not their drivers, nor the radio communication, Ferret claims.

“The problem is not the pace during the race. The problem is being able to qualify,” he said.

“You can’t say Charles doesn’t know how to qualify. Lewis is the best pole-man ever.

“It’s only the way to put the temperature into the tyre with this car.”