Lewis Hamilton refuses to back down over criticism of teammate Leclerc

Lewis Hamilton vowed not to be silenced last night as he refused to back down over his criticism of his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc after a flashpoint between the pair at last weekend’s Mexico Grand Prix.

Leclerc and Hamilton were competing with one another at turn four on the opening lap of the race in Mexico last Sunday, with Leclerc attempting to pass his teammate. He went off in doing so and Hamilton’s defence left him vulnerable to being passed by Max Verstappen who went on to win, costing Ferrari a potential one-two.

Ferrari do not have formal rules of engagement between their drivers and Hamilton said at the time that the team had “big, big problems”, later squarely blaming his teammate for costing them a shot at victory. “The guy is 28 years old, so I don’t think it’s an age thing. I think it’s a mentality thing. It’s like ‘do or die. Either I win or none of us do’,” he said.

Speaking before this weekend’s São Paulo Grand Prix Hamilton was insistent he would not back down from his remarks. “I don’t really care what everyone thinks about what I said, I wear my heart on my sleeve and I say how I feel in the moment,” he said. “Of course there’s sometimes you say things and maybe you might regret it afterwards. I don’t.

“I’m never going to apologise for being authentic and real and I’m not going to be silenced. I have not been asked to not say anything and that’s just the way it is.”

Leclerc did not take part in media commitments on Thursday in São Paulo as he was attending the birth of his first child, so has yet to respond to Hamilton, who maintained that Ferrari needed to address the issue but also noted that the pair have yet to have the chance to speak to Fred Vasseur, the team principal.

Leclerc has been with the Scuderia since 2019 while Hamilton joined in 2025 and the pair enjoyed a good working relationship last year. However, this season, with the Briton enjoying the better form of the two, the incident in Mexico was the third time they have been at odds with one another on track.

The seven-time champion was clear, however, he had no intention of not fighting his corner on or off the track. “He is very much embedded within the team and I knew that it would always be a challenge, I’ve always respected that,” he said. “I’ve really worked hard to build a good relationship with Charles and bridge the gap and make sure that we’re harmonious and work hard together.

“Naturally, it’s not so easy having someone like me come into a team because I’m very outspoken and I push and push and push for so many changes and I’m going to be pushing for more as long as I’m here. That’s how it’s going to be.

“I’m here to win and to be able to win you have to work with everyone around you. I truly believe that this team can be fighting for the championship next year.”

Having secured the drivers’ championship with Kimi Antonelli last weekend, Mercedes can also clinch the constructors’ title in Brazil if they outscore Ferrari by three points.