Fred Vasseur stirs up strong talks among Ferrari fans with his comment about Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc
Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur’s remarks about Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have got fans chatting after the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Leclerc and Hamilton finished fourth and fifth after a tough 70-lap race at the Hungaroring. Both Ferraris kicked off on soft tyres, hoping to gain early ground, but Leclerc slipped from second to fifth, falling behind his teammate.
Hamilton was faster than third-placed Max Verstappen early on but couldn’t pass him. He was the first to pit, starting a chain of stops ahead. Hamilton managed to undercut Verstappen, but the Dutch driver soon overtook him again after they both passed Liam Lawson, who hadn’t stopped yet.
After his second stop, done earlier than others, Hamilton was running at the leaders’ pace and moved up to second after Oscar Piastri retired with gearbox trouble. Ferrari then chose to pit Hamilton for fresh soft tyres after a virtual safety car on lap 57, aiming to move him behind Verstappen in third place.
Hamilton came out in third, just ahead of Kimi Antonelli, but data showed Antonelli was slightly ahead at the pit exit line, so Hamilton let him pass again. To make things worse, Hamilton got a five-second penalty for going too fast in the pit lane—by just 0.1km/h—and ended up behind Leclerc in the final results.
When asked about Hamilton’s penalty, Vasseur told Brazilian journalist Julianne Cerasoli that Ferrari felt it wouldn’t be fair to ask Leclerc to slow down and let Hamilton keep fourth place. Leclerc finished about seven-tenths of a second ahead.
This sparked debate over whether Ferrari made the right call, especially since Hamilton leads Leclerc by 31 points in the Drivers’ Championship with nearly half the season done. Hamilton is the closest rival to championship leader Antonelli, who now has a 50-point lead after Hungary.
With 12 of 23 races left—though it’s still uncertain if Qatar and Abu Dhabi will happen—fans shared mixed opinions. One said, “That’s why they haven’t won anything for 20 years.” Another pointed out, “One is the championship runner-up, the other is fourth place.” A third added, “Half the season is gone, Hamilton is far ahead, so it makes sense to prioritize the leading driver. Those two points could matter later.”
But not everyone agreed. One fan said, “It’s not Leclerc’s fault Hamilton didn’t switch off his pit limiter at the right time.” Another asked, “Since when did Charles become the second driver?” And a third reminded, “Leclerc would be higher in the standings if not for his brake failure in Monaco and power steering problems in Spain.”
After the Hungarian GP (Race 11 of 23), the top drivers are:
1) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – 219 points
2) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – 169 points
3) George Russell (Mercedes) – 160 points
4) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 138 points
5) Lando Norris (McLaren) – 128 points
6) Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 109 points