Hamilton calls for formal guidelines after Italian GP clash with Leclerc
Lewis Hamilton has demanded that Ferrari establish formal written guidelines governing on-track battles between himself and Charles Leclerc, following a bruising encounter at Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix that proved costly for both drivers, reports BritPanorama.
The seven-time world champion was left seething after contact with his Monegasque teammate through the opening chicane at Monza sent him skidding across the gravel and tumbling down the order. Hamilton salvaged sixth place, whilst Leclerc’s afternoon ended in the barriers at Parabolica moments later.
“I think it comes down to rules of engagement,” Hamilton told reporters after the race. “Here, there are no rules. We need to address that.”
The British driver’s frustration was palpable, having watched a promising second-row start dissolve into yet another weekend of squandered points for the Scuderia at their home circuit before a record crowd of 403,666.
Hamilton had opted for the soft compound tyre at the start, as had Leclerc, with both Ferrari drivers launching from the second row. As they approached the first chicane, Hamilton dived down the inside of his teammate. Leclerc refused to yield, however, and the pair made the slightest of contact as they ran side by side through the corner. The Monegasque’s aggressive defence pushed Hamilton wide at the exit of Turn 2, sending him bouncing through the gravel and plummeting from fourth to tenth.
“I was ahead into Turn Two. By the apex I was ahead, so there’s no ‘we’ in it,” Hamilton said firmly, dismissing Leclerc’s post-race suggestion that “we went too far”.
Nico Rosberg, the 2016 champion turned Sky Sports pundit, was unequivocal in his assessment. “It’s very straightforward and simple. Lewis was ahead going in, so Charles has to leave room,” Rosberg said. “He didn’t, so it was 100% Charles’ fault.”
Leclerc’s own race ended in spectacular fashion shortly afterwards, crashing heavily into the barriers at Parabolica on the second lap — an incident eerily reminiscent of his 2020 shunt at the same corner — which triggered a red flag.
Hamilton drew a pointed contrast with his former team, where protocols had been established to manage precisely this kind of intra-team rivalry. “When I was at Mercedes, we had a written rule of engagement,” he explained. “We never really had it too bad, maybe between me and Nico a couple of times, but more often than not it was good.”
The absence of equivalent structures at Maranello, he suggested, lay at the heart of Sunday’s debacle. Hamilton was equally keen to make clear that the Tifosi need not fear any escalation from his side. “I don’t race dirty. I’ve always raced clean and fairly and always left space,” he insisted. “I’ve come into the team and tried to be respectful of space and definitely not put the team in jeopardy. I stand by that and that’s all I can talk about is on my side.”
The result leaves Hamilton’s championship aspirations in tatters. Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli — who gave Italian fans at least something to celebrate with a sensational victory from 19th on the grid — now holds a commanding 76-point advantage at the summit. Hamilton entered the weekend level on points with George Russell in the battle for second, but the gap to Antonelli has become a chasm that the Briton concedes may be unbridgeable.
“I think from today, we’ve just lost so much ground to them on points,” Hamilton said. “It’s far too late for those decisions to come. It’s many, many weeks too late.”
The seven-time champion pointed to a pattern of operational failings that have undermined Ferrari’s campaign. “We’re just not executing as well as we can. Not as well as the other teams are,” he acknowledged, adding that the red flag restart had compounded his woes after what he believed was a poor tyre choice.
Hamilton placed the onus squarely on team principal Fred Vasseur to instigate meaningful reform, noting that leadership must set the tone for the entire operation. “It starts with Fred,” he said. “There’s only so much you can say, so much you can push and shove at the top. We’ve got to change things because it’s not helping us move forward.”
Vasseur, for his part, acknowledged the opening-lap confrontation was far from ideal but declined to announce any immediate measures. “I spoke to Lewis for two seconds and not at all with Charles,” the Frenchman said. “We’ll have time to discuss that. I prefer to discuss with them first.”
Despite his evident frustration, Hamilton was careful to temper his criticism. “It’s painful enough as it is to be badgering my guys. They go home to their families. They’re working really, really hard,” he said. “We’ll go back to the drawing table.”
The championship moves to the new Madring circuit in Madrid this coming weekend, where the stakes will remain equally high amidst a backdrop of ongoing uncertainty and competition.
