Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur ordered Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to “work as professionals” as he held showdown talks with his drivers after a spat at the Mexico City Grand Prix.
Hamilton, who took pole for the first time in Ferrari colours, raged at his teammate after Leclerc came up alongside him and the pair clashed on the first lap.
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The Monegasque overtook him while Max Verstappen took advantage of the incident to sneak past Hamilton into second place, with the Briton later arguing Leclerc’s move “lost us the win” and warning the Scuderia over the radio that they would need to have “serious talks” about the rules of engagement between the pair.
Speaking ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, Vasseur said that he had discussed the issue with his drivers and insisted the priority was the Ferrari brand.
He said: “It was good to discuss, good to clarify my position and their position. Now we turn the page and we are focused on the next one. I’m not asking them to be best friends.
“I think it would be even probably a bit negative. I’m just asking them to act and to work as professionals and this is it.”
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Hamilton argued Leclerc’s move cost Ferrari first and second in the race, with Verstappen taking the victory, and called for a written rule of engagement between himself and his 29-year-old teammate.
Vasseur did not blame Leclerc specifically for Ferrari’s failure to win, insisting the blame was shared: “For sure, in this situation, we failed collectively because we were one-two and we didn’t win the race,” Vasseur said.
“At the end, that means that it’s clear that we failed and we have to react. But the conclusion of the meeting was clear that it was a clear reminder that Ferrari is coming first.
“We had a discussion, it has to stay private. It’s a matter of respect also for them and for the team and once again, the most important is the message.
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“The message is that we are working for a brand, we are working for sponsors but I would say probably mainly also the employees of the team.”
Hamilton’s former boss at Mercedes, Toto Wolff, also commented on the incident during the press conference at Interlagos, comparing the sparring between the seven-time world champion and Leclerc to Hamilton’s previous battles with Silver Arrows teammate Nico Rosberg.
Wolff said: “Fred here doesn’t need any advice from me but it’s like a deja vu because you’ve asked me the exactly same questions for how many years? 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, that was it and then Nico called it a day.
“Sometimes when you put two strong drivers in there, the best ones have edges and they want to win and that is a situation that is always very difficult to cope.
“So in that respect, I can so relate to what Fred goes through at the moment and I think sometimes it needs the really tough moments like the last race to make a point.”
