Juan Pablo Montoya believes Ferrari should have intervened with team orders after Lewis Hamilton’s Hungarian Grand Prix penalty, arguing that Charles Leclerc could have dropped back just enough to preserve his teammate’s fourth place and limit the damage to Hamilton’s 2026 championship challenge.
Lewis Hamilton reached the chequered flag in fourth position, 4.3 seconds ahead of Charles Leclerc, but a five-second penalty for exceeding the pit-lane speed limit by only 0.1 km/h reversed their finishing order. The sanction promoted Charles Leclerc to fourth and left Lewis Hamilton fifth, costing the seven-time world champion further ground before the summer break.
How Lewis Hamilton’s Hungarian GP penalty reversed Ferrari’s result
The decisive incident occurred after Oscar Piastri’s retirement prompted most of the leading drivers to stop for fresh tyres. Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli remained on track, while Lewis Hamilton entered the pits and emerged ahead of Kimi Antonelli in the fight for third place.
Lewis Hamilton had exceeded the speed limit by 0.1 km/h during the stop, however, and was subsequently given a five-second penalty. Although the Ferrari driver handed the position back to Kimi Antonelli, the punishment remained in place. A detailed explanation of the incident and the separate FIA decision involving Charles Leclerc can be found in the report on Lewis Hamilton’s 0.1 km/h pit-lane infringement.
After relinquishing third place, Lewis Hamilton finished fourth on the road, with Charles Leclerc following 4.3 seconds behind. The five-second sanction therefore dropped Lewis Hamilton behind his teammate in the final 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix classification.
Juan Pablo Montoya questions Ferrari’s lack of team orders
Speaking on F1 TV, Juan Pablo Montoya admitted he was surprised that Ferrari had not instructed Charles Leclerc to reduce his pace near the end of the race. With less than five seconds separating the two cars, Juan Pablo Montoya believed Charles Leclerc could have eased off by approximately one second, allowing Lewis Hamilton to retain fourth place once the penalty was applied.
Juan Pablo Montoya emphasised that his view would have been different if Charles Leclerc had been fighting for a podium. In that situation, the former Formula 1 driver considered it understandable for Charles Leclerc to defend his own opportunity. With only fourth and fifth positions at stake, however, he argued that Ferrari should have prioritised the driver with the stronger championship position.
The potential team-order decision was only one element of a difficult afternoon for Ferrari. Although the SF-26 showed competitive pace, the team failed to convert its qualifying performance into a podium, with several Hungarian Grand Prix mistakes contributing to the final outcome.
Ferrari’s pace was strongest in the wrong areas
Ferrari had recorded the second and third-fastest qualifying performances, but Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen gained ground on the two Ferrari drivers at the beginning of the race. Lewis Hamilton appeared to have the stronger pace of the Ferrari pair over the Grand Prix distance, yet the team was unable to maximise the performance available from its package.
Juan Pablo Montoya suggested that Ferrari had little choice but to take risks at the start because track position was particularly important. In his assessment, Ferrari’s best opportunity to win depended on reaching the exit of Turn 1 in the lead. Once that did not happen, controlling the race became significantly more difficult.
He also judged that the SF-26 was quick in sections that contributed to a strong overall lap time but less effective in the areas where overtaking opportunities were available. That imbalance made it harder for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to use their pace against the cars ahead. Ferrari’s problems were compounded by strategic decisions, with the team later acknowledging that its Hungarian Grand Prix tyre strategy was not the optimum choice.
Hamilton’s championship position intensifies the debate
Lewis Hamilton entered the summer break fourth in the championship and 50 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli. Charles Leclerc was a further 31 points behind his Ferrari teammate, making every lost position potentially significant for Lewis Hamilton’s title prospects.
That gap formed the basis of Juan Pablo Montoya’s argument. Ferrari collected the same combined number of points regardless of the order in which its cars finished, but allowing Lewis Hamilton to remain fourth would have directed the larger score towards the driver closer to the championship leader.
The result was particularly frustrating after Lewis Hamilton believed Ferrari possessed the performance required to win in Hungary. Instead, the team left the Hungaroring without a podium despite its strong qualifying speed and encouraging pace during parts of the weekend. Lewis Hamilton’s assessment of the painful missed opportunity for Ferrari underlined the scale of the disappointment.
Charles Leclerc’s SF-26 adaptation adds to Ferrari hierarchy debate
Lewis Hamilton has held the upper hand over Charles Leclerc under the new 2026 regulations. Charles Leclerc has adopted elements of his teammate’s set-up and even his braking configuration while attempting to become more comfortable with the SF-26. Some observers have interpreted that process as further support for making the seven-time world champion Ferrari’s priority in the title race.
Jolyon Palmer has also argued that Charles Leclerc should begin allowing Lewis Hamilton through when the championship situation makes it beneficial. From that perspective, the Hungarian Grand Prix represented another occasion when Ferrari could have protected Lewis Hamilton’s points without changing the team’s combined result.
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