The director of the Ferrari team, Fred Vasseur, has denied claims that the team divided the strategy of its drivers, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, during the Spanish Grand Prix to avoid conflicts on track.
Recently, the relationship between Leclerc and Hamilton has drawn attention, especially after the tensions experienced at Zandvoort and an incident during the first lap in Italy that compromised Hamilton’s race. Despite these events, Vasseur has stated that there are no issues between the two drivers.
In the Spanish race, Hamilton started fourth, while Leclerc closely followed in fifth position. However, both drivers opted for very different tyre strategies: Hamilton started on soft tyres, while Leclerc chose hard ones. This decision raised suspicions about the team’s intentions.
Vasseur, in response to questions about this separation of strategy, emphasized that other teams, like McLaren and Red Bull, also made similar choices with their drivers, without it implying avoiding any conflict. ‘It is not a problem exclusive to Ferrari,’ he told the media.
During the race, Hamilton suffered a brake problem that forced him to retire after a few laps. On the other hand, Leclerc continued with the hard tyre strategy, hoping for a possible appearance of a safety car that could offer him an opportunity for a cost-effective pit stop. ‘I believe the decision we made was the right one, and if I had to repeat the race, I would do it the same way,’ Leclerc stated after the race.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
SourceID: SRC_07ed23731cf968b486f37970378c702912aba537