Ferrari chairman John Elkann tells Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to ‘talk less and focus on driving’ after Sao Paulo GP
Ferrari chairman John Elkann says Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc need to “talk less and focus on driving” after a disappointing Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Hamilton and Leclerc both failed to finish Sunday’s race in Brazil after being caught up in separate incidents as the team’s frustrating season continued.
Ferrari dropped to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship behind Red Bull and Mercedes, having hoped to challenge for the title at the start of this year.
They finished runners-up to McLaren last year by just 14 points but are 394 points behind this year’s constructors’ champions with three rounds remaining.
Speaking at an Italian Olympic Committee ahead of next year’s Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, Ferrari chairman Elkann said: “If we look at the season in F1, we can say we have mechanics who are winning the championship with the performances they’re putting in, particularly with everything they are doing in our pit stops.
“If we look at our engineers, the car has undoubtedly improved. If we look at the rest, it’s not up to standard.
“We have drivers who need to focus more and talk less, because we still have important races to come, and finishing second in the constructors isn’t impossible.”
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Charles Leclerc’s Sao Paulo race came to an abrupt end as his front wheel was torn off after a race restart collision with Kimi Antonelli
Hamilton joined Ferrari at the start of this year but is yet to finish on the podium and has largely been off the pace compared to Leclerc, particularly in Qualifying where he is 16-5 down in the head-to-head.
The seven-time world champion has not gelled with the car, other than at the Chinese Grand Prix in March when he converted a Sprint pole into victory.
Ferrari have been forced to either run the car higher than planned due to fears over excessive plank wear, which saw both drivers disqualified from the main race in Shanghai.
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Hamilton cut a dejected figure after qualifying P13 for the Sao Paulo GP
Hamilton and Leclerc have also been forced to not push at full pace due to this issue, lifting and coasting into corners, so the car is at top speed for less time.
“This is a nightmare, I’ve been living it for a while,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1 when asked about the latest setback in his first Ferrari season.
“The flip between the dream of driving for this amazing team and then the nightmare of results that we’ve had, the ups and downs, it’s challenging.
“But 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 and recover it.”
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Karun Chandhok analyses Ferrari’s Sprint Qualifying woes as Hamilton was under investigation for not slowing under a double yellow flag
Leclerc: Three-way crash not all penalised Piastri’s fault
The big drama of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix came early on when Oscar Piastri dived up the inside of Kimi Antonelli and Leclerc in the battle for second, behind eventual race-winner Lando Norris, into Turn One but made contact with the Mercedes driver.
That collision meant Antonelli went spearing into the side of Leclerc, whose front left tyre fell off the car and forced him to pull over at the end of the next straight.
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Karun Chandhok and Jamie Chadwick analyse the opening lap collision between Oscar Piastri, Antonelli and Leclerc as well as reaction from the drivers
Leclerc told Sky Sports F1: “Oscar was optimistic but Kimi knew that Oscar was on the inside, I think, and he kind of did the corner like Oscar was never there.
“For me the blame is not all on Oscar. Yes, it was optimistic, but this could have been avoided. I’m frustrated. At the end of the day I’m not angry with Oscar or Kimi, these things happen, but I wouldn’t go as far as saying it was all Oscar’s fault. I don’t think it is.”
Formula 1’s thrilling title race continues with the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 21-23, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
