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Fred Vasseur delivered a message to Lewis Hamilton about Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari issues that will fill him with dread

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Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton described the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix as the ‘worst race’ he’d ever experienced in a damning indictment of his latest Formula 1 weekend.

Lewis Hamilton was initially very positive about his chances at the Spanish Grand Prix after outqualifying Charles Leclerc.

He outqualified Leclerc for only the second time this season excluding Sprint Races, albeit the Monegasque driver saved an extra set of tyres for the race.

Leclerc was quick to moan about Hamilton’s pace on the team radio and Ferrari communicated to the seven-time world champion that he needed to move out of the way.

Hamilton then watched as Leclerc drove off into the distance and suddenly his fight was with George Russell behind him.

RANKDRIVERTEAMPOINTS
1Oscar PiastriMcLaren25
2Lando NorrisMcLaren18
3Charles LeclercFerrari15
4George RussellMercedes12
5Nico HulkenbergSauber10
6Lewis HamiltonFerrari8
7Isack HadjarRacing Bulls6
8Pierre GaslyAlpine4
9Fernando AlonsoAston Martin2
10Max VerstappenRed Bull1

The Ferrari driver initially leapfrogged his old teammate at the first corner but ultimately finished behind him as the race panned out.

Nico Rosberg spotted Hamilton suffering with an issue worse than any other driver across the race weekend, but that will provide him with very little solace.

Team principal Fred Vasseur’s comments after the race aren’t going to make Hamilton feel any better about the problems he was facing as the race went on.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Scuderia Ferrari HP F1 Team's english driver Lewis Hamilton
Photo by Luca Martini/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Fred Vasseur denies Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton faced the same Spanish Grand Prix problem

Vasseur told the media, including Autoracer, that both of his drivers had problems in the final stint.

“We had a problem with Charles too, not just Lewis, but not something related to the oil,” Vasseur said.

When asked if his drivers were suffering from the same problem, Vasseur simply said, “No,” refusing to initially give a further explanation.

However, in a separate interview relayed by Autoracer, Vasseur continued: “Lewis had a good pace until the last stint, where he had balance problems.

“He had a problem with the car, I won’t say what the problem was.”

CategoryLewis HamiltonCharles Leclerc
2025 points156242
Grand Prix results*318
Grand Prix qualifying519
Grand Prix wins00
Grand Prix poles01
Grand Prix podiums07
Best finish4th2nd
Disqualifications11
Retirements22
Fastest laps11
Grand Prix points finishes1920
Sprint results33
Sprint Qualifying24
Sprint wins10
Sprint poles10
Sprint podiums20
The 2025 F1 teammate head-to-head battle of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc
*Both Ferrari drivers were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix
*Both Ferrari drivers retired from the Dutch and Sao Paulo Grands Prix

Hamilton will be worried that the team didn’t think he was impacted with the same issue as Leclerc but instead looked like he was struggling with his car’s setup once again.

If Hamilton had a tangible issue slowing him down then his performance would be more understandable, but instead, the car simply didn’t seem to suit his driving style.

This follows on from Hamilton being considerably slower than Leclerc in Monaco where he was nearly a minute off his new teammate.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton gutted after Spanish Grand Prix struggles

The low point for Hamilton would have been watching Sauber driver Nico Hulkenberg sailing past him after the safety car restart.

Hulkenberg was on fresher soft tyres but for the slowest car on the grid to pass him with ease would have been difficult to swallow.

Hamilton was asked about his lack of performance and explained: “I have no idea why. Not a single clue. It just wasn’t a good day.

“The strategy was good. The team did a great job. That’s it, I had a really bad day and I have nothing to say.

Position Drivers' Championship Points
1

Oscar Piastri

186
2

Lando Norris

176
3

Max Verstappen

137
4

George Russell

111
5

Charles Leclerc

94
6

Lewis Hamilton

71
7

Andrea Kimi Antonelli

48
8

Alexander Albon

42
9

Isack Hadjar

21
10

Esteban Ocon

20

“It was a difficult day, a terrible day. There’s no point in explaining it. I just don’t know what to say.”

He concluded the interview by stating: “I’m sure they [Ferrari] won’t be able to [find a solution], probably the answer is that it’s just me.”

Nico Rosberg thought Ferrari put Hamilton in a ‘horrible’ position during the race and while that may be true, Vasseur will be worried about the gap between his two drivers.

Hamilton went into Sunday’s race hoping to secure his first Grand Prix podium for Ferrari, but once again had to watch his teammate collect another trophy instead.