Ferrari Staff Principal Fred Vasseur has confirmed that each Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton encountered technical difficulties within the last phases of the 2025 Method 1 Spanish Grand Prix, affecting their performances and last race positions.
Charles Leclerc secured a second consecutive podium on the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona by profiting from the chaos that unfolded within the closing laps, whereas his Maranello teammate endured one more irritating race, ending sixth regardless of displaying early promise. Beginning because the top-placed Ferrari on the grid, Lewis Hamilton rapidly got here underneath stress from his teammate. This led the group to implement a technique swap by lap 9, permitting the Monegasque to maneuver forward.
Lewis Hamilton’s race started to unravel as he struggled with poor rear grip, falling as a lot as 10 seconds behind the leaders. Though he began closing the hole earlier than the deployment of the Security Automotive, his momentum was disrupted. On the penultimate lap, Lewis Hamilton misplaced a place to Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg however regained sixth place after Max Verstappen was penalised. Following the race, the seven-time world champion expressed his disappointment, reportedly describing it as one among his worst races. Nonetheless, Frederic Vasseur later clarified that the seven-time Method 1 world champion had been coping with a automotive concern that considerably compromised his last stint.
Chatting with media shops together with ScuderiaFans.com, Frederic Vasseur emphasised that Lewis Hamilton’s post-race feedback shouldn’t be taken at face worth. He identified that emotional reactions instantly after a race are sometimes not absolutely consultant of the scenario, and cautioned towards drawing untimely conclusions.
Frederic Vasseur burdened that the British driver had spent round 70 p.c of the race forward of George Russell and questioned whether or not the Mercedes man had described his personal race as a catastrophe. He then confirmed {that a} technical downside had affected Hamilton’s automotive earlier than the Security Automotive interval, hampering his efficiency. Regardless of the unsatisfactory outcome, the Frenchman reminded reporters that Hamilton nonetheless accomplished 45 laps forward of his former Mercedes teammate.
Charles Leclerc additionally encountered difficulties late within the race. His lap occasions dropped considerably within the last laps, inserting his podium end in jeopardy till a collision between George Russell and Max Verstappen at Flip 5 helped safe his third-place outcome. Observers, together with Mercedes group boss Toto Wolff, famous that Leclerc’s Ferrari seemed to be leaking oil. Nonetheless, Frederic Vasseur dismissed this concept, asserting that the problem had no connection to any oil leak.
He additional revealed that Charles Leclerc had been contending with a separate technical fault from the one skilled by Lewis Hamilton. Though Frederic Vasseur didn’t specify the precise nature of the problem, he confirmed that it was a minor however impactful downside that the group remains to be investigating.
Each Ferrari drivers managing totally different car-related issues raises questions concerning the reliability of the SF-25, particularly because the group continues its pursuit of Purple Bull and McLaren within the Constructors’ Championship. Whereas Charles Leclerc managed to salvage a robust outcome underneath stress, Lewis Hamilton’s ongoing struggles with adaptation and automotive efficiency stay a priority for Ferrari heading into the subsequent rounds of the 2025 Method 1 season.
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