Ferrari silent about issues Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton nursed
Intrigue surrounds issue which affected both Ferrari F1 cars during Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were both nursing problems with their Ferrari cars during the closing stages of the F1 Spanish Grand Prix, it has emerged.
Leclerc claimed a hard-earned third place to complete the podium behind the dominant McLaren duo having outpaced his seven-time world champion teammate Hamilton, who crossed the line two places lower than he started in seventh.
Hamilton outqualified Leclerc for only the second time this season and started a season-high fifth on the grid at Barcelona, only to endure a difficult afternoon.
The 40-year-old Briton unusually struggled for pace during the 66 lap race and was even passed by Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg following a late Safety Car. Hamilton was promoted to sixth thanks to Max Verstappen’s post-race penalty.
Speaking to media including Crash.net on Sunday evening, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur revealed that Hamilton suffered a problem in the final stint, but would not say exactly what the issue was.
“You are experienced enough to not draw a conclusion after the first words of the driver,” Vasseur said.
“If you want to create a polemic, you can, but it’s not the case. I think we did 70 per cent of the race in front of [George] Russell. I’m not sure that Russell said that the race was a disaster.
“But then we had an issue on the car, the last stint, before the Safety Car, and the result is not good. But he did 45 laps in front of Russell.”
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff claimed oil had been coming from Leclerc’s car in the latter stages during his own post-race media briefing, but Vasseur said he did not know what his counterpart was referring to.
“We had a small issue also on the other car, but not about the oil,” Vasseur clarified. “I don’t know where it’s coming from, from the car. I don’t know that.”
Hamilton blames himself for ‘really bad day’
Hamilton made no mention of the apparent car problem he encountered as he put the blame on himself for his lacklustre performance in Spain.
"Well what do you want me to say? I've had a really bad day and have nothing to say. It was a difficult day," he told Sky Sports F1.
“There's nothing else to add to it. It was terrible. There's no point explaining it. It's not your fault. I just don't know what to say.”
When it was suggested to him that Ferrari can find answers, Hamilton responded: “I’m sure they won't - it was probably just me."
Hamilton went on to claim the Spanish Grand Prix was “the worst race I’ve experienced”.
"I have no idea why it was so bad. That was the worst race I've experienced balance-wise,” he said.
Asked if there were any positives to take from the weekend, Hamilton replied: “zero.”
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