My patience at Ferrari is over. Italian team president John Elkann has harshly criticized Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc after they withdrew from the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos last Sunday (September 11). He said athletes should “talk less and focus on driving.”
The comments were made during an Italian Olympic Committee Sky Sports event, days after another disappointing result for the team. Elkann said Ferrari “needs drivers who think more about the team than about themselves”, stressing that the team’s success depends on discipline.
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At the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Hamilton suffered damage to his car in contact with Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto early in the race, and retired on lap 37. Meanwhile, Leclerc retired from the race on the sixth lap after a crash with Kimi Antonelli. Neither of them scored.
Elkann also praised the work of the engineers and mechanics, but expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the starting duo.
“If we analyze the F1 season, we can say that there are mechanics who win championships with every performance, especially in the pit stops…The rest need to perform equally,” the chairman said.
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John Elkann demanded more performance from his drivers on the track
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Hamilton secured second place in the last training session
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Leclerc took second place
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Hamilton, who has been a key addition to the team this season, has yet to reach the podium with the team and is only sixth in the championship with 148 points. After the race, British athletes also expressed their dissatisfaction with the result. In the constructors’ championship, Ferrari dropped to fourth place behind Red Bull and Mercedes.
The next race is the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 23rd, which will be an opportunity for the drivers to respond to criticism on the circuit.
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