Lewis Hamilton has revealed how he and Charles Leclerc sat down alone for a face-to-face conversation after their tense opening-lap moment at Monza, with the seven-time world champion praising his Ferrari teammate’s maturity and saying the pair have fully resolved the issue. Charles Leclerc accepted responsibility for the near-incident at the Italian Grand Prix, while Lewis Hamilton accepted his teammate’s apology.
The personal tension between the two Ferrari drivers therefore appears to have disappeared ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid. Questions surrounding Ferrari’s track operations, rules of engagement and internal communication remain open, however, with Lewis Hamilton acknowledging on Thursday that he and team principal Frederic Vasseur do not always share the same view and that there is still a long road ahead before those areas can genuinely improve.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc clear the air after Monza
There are no lingering personal issues between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. Following their close encounter at the start of the previous race, the two Ferrari drivers met privately to discuss exactly what had happened.
Charles Leclerc has already explained that their personal relationship remains excellent despite the competitive reality that both drivers want to win and beat the other. Lewis Hamilton shares that assessment and has now highlighted the quality of the dialogue between the two sides of the Ferrari garage.
“I think the great thing,” Lewis Hamilton explained during Thursday’s Spanish Grand Prix press conference in Madrid, attended by several media outlets including FormulaPassion.it, “is that we didn’t shy away from discussing it. We sat down face to face, just me and him, we talked about it and we were both open and honest, resolving the matter.”
“We can move forward and I think that shows his maturity, but also the healthy attitude between us. It’s a relationship that we’ve built over time.”
Hamilton praises Leclerc’s maturity after Ferrari talks
The comments reinforce the picture of two drivers who remain determined competitors without allowing one on-track incident to damage their working relationship. Ferrari has already been dealing with wider questions over how Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton should race each other, with Frederic Vasseur explaining Ferrari’s principles for the two drivers after Monza.
Charles Leclerc took responsibility for his part in what happened at the Italian Grand Prix, and Ferrari has also discussed what the Monegasque admitted after the incident with Lewis Hamilton. The private conversation between the two drivers appears to have dealt with the personal side of the matter, even if broader organisational questions inside the team remain unresolved.
Lewis Hamilton made clear that he does not expect the two Ferrari drivers to avoid difficult moments altogether. Their similar pace and shared desire to win mean further close battles are likely as the season continues.
“Obviously there will be moments of frustration and there will definitely be other occasions when we’ll be close, because we have very similar pace and we both want to win just as much as the other, just as we both want to do the best for the team,” Lewis Hamilton said.
“But yes, I think it was a really positive conversation.”
Ferrari still has work to do beyond the Hamilton-Leclerc relationship
While Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have put their disagreement behind them, the situation does not mean every issue raised by Monza has disappeared. Ferrari’s procedures, communication and management of its two drivers remain areas requiring further work, and the team has already faced a broader debate over how its approach to team orders could affect Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
On a personal level, however, Lewis Hamilton’s message from Madrid was clear. The two drivers confronted the issue directly, spoke openly without intermediaries and reached an understanding. For Ferrari, that provides a calmer backdrop as attention shifts from the fallout of Monza to the challenges of the Spanish Grand Prix.
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