Lewis Hamilton demands 'serious talks' at Ferrari after Charles Leclerc incident at Mexico City Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton reiterated "something needs to change" after his latest incident with Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc cost the Scuderia victory in Mexico; watch Friday's practice sessions in Brazil from 3.30pm and 7pm, live on Sky Sports F1
Tuesday 3 November 2026 06:10, UK
Lewis Hamilton has called for "serious talks" at Ferrari after his opening lap incident with Charles Leclerc at the Mexico City Grand Prix, while team principal Frederic Vasseur suggested there was not enough "respect" given.
Leclerc attacked Hamilton around the outside going into Turn 4 but outbraked himself and cut the corner to take the lead, while Hamilton lost out to Red Bull's Max Verstappen after briefly going off track.
The stewards gave Leclerc a five-second time penalty which allowed Verstappen to overtake him during the pit stop phase, going on to win the race while Hamilton finished second and Leclerc in fourth.
- How Mercedes can win Constructors' Championship this Sunday
- Sao Paulo GP Schedule on Sky | F1 2026 Calendar | F1 2026 Standings
- Got the Sky Sports app? Sign up for latest F1 alerts📱
- Not got Sky? Latest Sky Sports deals or stream F1 with no contract 📺
"Ultimately, it was that, that lost us the win. I think we have to have some serious talks behind the scenes, for sure," said Hamilton.
"But the good thing is the team are working really hard. We've really improved our car. We're on the old engine at the weekend as well, so good result, good points. Shame we didn't get a win, some wins, some losses."
On the team radio during a red flag period for Valtteri Bottas' big crash in his Cadillac, Hamilton stated "we've got big problems" in reference to the Lap 1 incident.
A frustrated Vasseur says his discussion with the drivers ahead of this weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix will be "a matter of respect".
When asked if he could trust his drivers for not putting their individual objectives above the team's, Vasseur said: "This is typically what means respect.
"They are not working for themselves, they are working for a group. They are working for a lot of sponsors. They are working for the 2,000 people of the company.
"The guys, when we had to push for the upgrades, they were working night and day. We have to keep this in mind."
Hamilton: Something needs to change
Hamilton and Leclerc have found themselves fighting together several times since becoming Ferrari team-mates at the start of 2025.
After being forced wide by Leclerc at the Italian Grand Prix in September, Hamilton accused Ferrari of having "no rules" and demanded "rules of engagement" are required, which he had at Mercedes.
Following their latest incident in Mexico, he said: "I don't know what needs to happen now, how we discuss things when we go back. I'm not quite sure how I want to engage in that.
"Of course, the frustrations are.. I'm happy because Kimi just won the championship, so I'm really torn because, on one side, I'm happy, and on the other side, I'm really p*****.
"We lost valuable points, and we, as a team, worked so hard. We could have easily had a one-two. Really, we had the pace to do so.
"We're going into Turn 4 first and second. If we just hold position, anything can happen in the race, but when your team-mate works against you and then you lose positions like that, it's definitely tough.
"We'll just talk about it offline, and it's not really worth saying too much more. We don't have rules of engagement, and whether or not that will change anything from Charles' side, I don't know. We've just got to figure it out, but something needs to change for sure."
Brundle: Hamilton-Leclerc incident isn't pretty for Ferrari
Sky Sports F1's Martin Brundle:
"Charles should have given the place back, but he couldn't because cunning old Max Verstappen got himself in between the two Ferraris as he tried to do back in Madrid earlier this year.
"They're hard-wired racing drivers, it's a curious business we have, where you perform as an individual in a team environment. You're measured as an individual, you're rewarded as an individual, but when the adrenaline is up and the chance of a gap is there, as the great Ayrton Senna used to say: 'If you don't go for a gap, you're no longer a racing driver'.
"Charles has had some frustrations this year, and it doesn't look pretty for the team like when Lando ran into Oscar Piastri in Singapore in the sprint race, it doesn't look pretty for the team and you've let 1,500 people down in your team.
"That's just the car side, without the power unit side. You're only the final link in the chain of the team but you're the one out there that's got to deliver in the heat of the moment. Ferrari will have to manage that somehow.
"They will sit down and we will go to Brazil and they will say 'yes we sat down, we understood it all, we will move forward and it won't happen again' but in reality we know it will."
Formula 1 heads to Brazil for the final leg of the triple header with the Sao Paulo Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW.
