Ferrari chairman John Elkann says Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton need to “focus on driving and talk less” in a shock criticism of the Ferrari Formula 1 drivers.
Speaking after a double DNF for Ferrari at the Brazil Grand Prix, which resulted in the Maranello outfit slipping from second to fourth in the constructors’ standings, while the Italian manufacturer sealed both WEC manufacturers’ and drivers’ titles in the Bahrain finale, Elkann gave his assessment.
“We won the endurance world titles in Bahrain, and it was an extraordinary feeling. Winning both the constructors’ and drivers’ championships shows that when Ferrari is united, when everyone works together, we can achieve truly great things,” he told Sky Sports Italy.
“Brazil was a big disappointment. Looking at the Formula 1 championship, we can say that we have our mechanics, who are basically winning the championship with their performance and everything that has been done on the pitstops. Our engineers have undoubtedly improved the car. But when it comes to the rest, it is still not up to par.
“And surely we have drivers who need to focus on driving and talk less. We still have important races ahead of us, and it is not impossible to achieve second place [in the constructors]. This is the most important message, because Bahrain itself is the demonstration that, when everyone at Ferrari work together, we win.”
Heading into the Brazil GP weekend, Ferrari sat second in the constructors’ standings. A mixed sprint qualifying left Leclerc and Hamilton starting the sprint race from eighth and 11th, respectively.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
Photo by: Anni Graf – Formula 1 via Getty Images
While the drivers were able to convert this into fifth and seventh-place finishes, it was not enough to keep Mercedes at bay as the Brackley outfit overtook Ferrari in the standings with second and third-place finishes.
Unfortunately for the Scuderia team, the weekend continued to deteriorate. Leclerc started the race from third on the grid but ultimately retired after a clash with Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Oscar Piastri. Hamilton, who started from 13th, also retired due to damage sustained from early collisions with Williams’s Carlos Sainz and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.
The double DNF, combined with an impressive drive from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen from the pitlane to third, placed Ferrari fourth in the standings by the end of the weekend.
Hamilton was particularly damning in his reflection of the weekend. “It’s a nightmare,” he told Sky Sports F1 after the race. “I’ve been living it for a while. The flip between the dream of driving for this amazing team and then the nightmare of the results that we’ve had.
“The ups and downs. It’s challenging. Tomorrow I’ll get back up. I’ll keep training. I’ll keep working with the team. I really wanted to get them good points this weekend but I’ll come back as strong as I can in the next race and try to recover.”
With three rounds remaining, the battle for second in the constructors’ championship is tight with 36 points separating Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari.
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– The Autosport.com Team
