The Miami Grand Prix saw Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc repeatedly clash with their race engineers over team radio.
Their respective disputes drew all attention to Ferrari, overshadowing a fundamental issue…
Both unhappy, and who can blame them…
Let’s quickly recap the matter. Following a Virtual Safety Car, Lewis Hamilton found himself just behind Charles Leclerc, but on medium tyres compared to the Monegasque’s hard compound.
At that point, the seven-time Formula 1 world champion requested a position swap, which only occurred after several laps, by which time his fresher tyres had already lost their peak performance.
This manoeuvre was carried out in an attempt to close the gap to Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes. Once it became clear that overtaking the rival driver was not possible, Charles Leclerc reclaimed his original position ahead of the Briton.
…But the real problem is something else
This scenario led to something being overlooked: Ferrari, whether on medium or hard tyres, did not have the race pace to finish in the top six. They were, in fact, the fifth-fastest team on the grid—just as qualifying had shown.
Not only that. Team principal Frédéric Vasseur stated after the race that “the pace was similar to that of Mercedes and Red Bull.”
In short, it had already become clear from the first five races that the Ferrari is not as fast as it was supposed to be (according to winter claims). But Miami leaves us with one takeaway: the real problem at Maranello is not the drivers’ frustration with the current situation, but rather the total confusion within the team—both in terms of performance and organisation.
It feels like 2022 all over again. That year, too, they failed to win for the very same reason, with only one difference compared to 2025: the car, although unreliable, was significantly more competitive…
