Vasseur Urges Lewis Hamilton to “Calm Down” as Internal Tensions Rise at Ferrari
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has advised Lewis Hamilton to regain his composure after the seven-time Formula One world champion delivered a brutally honest and emotional post-race interview following the Las Vegas Grand Prix. The comments, which painted a gloomy picture of Hamilton’s season, have stirred additional tension within Ferrari’s camp, especially after earlier remarks from Ferrari chairman John Elkann, who warned both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to “talk less.”
Hamilton, who started the race from a distant P19, produced a commendable comeback drive on the neon-lit Las Vegas strip, eventually crossing the finish line in 10th place. After the race concluded, he was promoted to P8 due to the double disqualification of McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri for excessive skid block wear. Despite the improved classification, Hamilton remained visibly dejected.
Speaking with reporters, the 40-year-old did not sugar-coat the season’s struggles.
“I feel terrible,” he said. “This has been the worst season ever. No matter how hard I push, it keeps spiralling downward. I’m giving everything both inside and outside the car.”
His blunt assessment came at a delicate moment for Ferrari’s leadership. It followed Elkann’s earlier call for Hamilton and Leclerc to reduce the amount of negative or emotionally charged commentary in public. Now, with Hamilton’s frustrations spilling over once again, Vasseur has stepped in to try to steady the morale ahead of the season’s final two rounds.
Vasseur: “We Have to Calm Down”
Addressing Hamilton’s outburst, Vasseur stressed that emotions can often run high immediately after a tough race, especially when starting so far back on the grid.
“The main problem was qualifying,” Vasseur explained. “When you begin a race from P20—or P19 after Tsunoda’s pit-lane start—you are automatically on the back foot. But despite this, the first half of his race was solid.”
He admitted the team struggled after switching to the medium tyres, but insisted the situation was not as bleak as Hamilton’s comments suggested.
“At this moment, we need to calm down,” Vasseur continued. “Jumping out of the cockpit and speaking right away can lead to exaggerated reactions. That’s why we prefer to discuss things properly after the debrief.”
The Ferrari boss pushed back against Hamilton’s assertion that the entire season has fallen apart. According to Vasseur, while recent race weekends have been affected by penalties, retirements, and incidents, the underlying pace has actually improved.
Performance Not as Poor as Results Suggest, Says Vasseur
Vasseur highlighted that, on paper, the recent run of results might look disastrous—particularly with a DNF in Brazil, a penalty in Mexico, and a mistake-ridden weekend in Austin—but he believes the pure speed Hamilton showed tells a different story.
“If you look specifically at Mexico and Austin,” he said, “those were among Lewis’s strongest weekends in terms of raw performance. Our problem wasn’t the pace; it was the inability to piece together a clean, trouble-free weekend.”
He added that Ferrari’s recent slump in the championship standings reflects operational inconsistencies rather than a sudden drop in competitiveness.
“Mathematically, yes, we’ve taken a hit,” Vasseur conceded. “But in terms of actual performance, we are not as far off as it might seem. It’s the small issues—penalties, contact in Brazil with Colapinto, messy qualifying sessions—that have cost us heavily.”
Vasseur reminded Hamilton that the car’s speed earlier in the Las Vegas weekend was proof that Ferrari can still deliver strong results. Hamilton topped the timesheets during FP1 and remained competitive in FP2, only for qualifying mishaps to compromise his entire weekend.
Focus Shifts to the Final Two Race
With only two races remaining in the championship, Vasseur emphasized the importance of maintaining focus rather than letting emotions derail the effort.
“We must not overhaul everything or panic,” he said. “We simply need to execute cleaner weekends. The pace is there; it’s the build-up and execution that must be refined.”
Ferrari currently sit fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, trailing Red Bull by 13 points in the battle for third. Every point in the final two rounds will be crucial—not only for the standings, but for team morale heading into the next season.
