Lewis Hamilton still waiting on an apology from Ferrari chief who publicly criticised him

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Lewis Hamilton is trying to initiate change at Ferrari, and it increasingly looks as if it’s working.

Having failed to score a podium at all in his first season, Hamilton has now managed three on the bounce, including a first Ferrari victory at the Barcelona Grand Prix.

Since that historic win, reports have detailed Hamilton’s extensive behind-the-scenes lobbying, sometimes in the face of internal resistance.

Lewis Hamilton is now only missing a Grand Prix pole position for Ferrari 🏆 Predict when it will come?

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Why John Elkann should say sorry for telling Lewis Hamilton to ‘talk less’

Hamilton is a ‘demanding driver’ who wasn’t ‘afraid’ to make bold requests during Ferrari’s 2026 car development. He knows that his record in F1 speaks for itself.

One of those requests concerned his brakes. It’s said that Hamilton caused ‘ructions’ through Ferrari when he asked to switch from Brembo discs to Carbon Industrie, which was politically sensitive given their long-standing relationship with the former.

But Fred Vasseur listened, and Hamilton’s greater comfort on the brakes was cited as a crucial factor in his vintage Barcelona performance.

Vasseur knew that Ferrari would have to change their philosophy to get the best out of superstar driver Hamilton, and he was ready to go ‘against the grain’. The team have taken far more risks this season, including their rotating rear wing and their smaller turbo, which made for some spectacular starts.

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In an interview last November, Ferrari chairman John Elkann was critical of both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

“We have drivers who need to focus more and talk less, because we still have important races to come, and finishing second in the constructors isn’t impossible,” he said, via Sky Sports.

Hamilton could easily have stuck to the party line, as Elkann wished, but this wasn’t in his nature. His willingness to speak out against Ferrari’s long-established traditions has been crucial to his success this year.

Now, Elkann owes Hamilton a public apology, though it remains to be seen whether it will arrive. The British driver said last year that he shouldn’t be judged on the basis of his first season.

Whether Elkann was reacting to public interviews or Hamilton’s internal feedback documents, the seven-time world champion deserved time before the highest-ranking member of the team rebuked him.

Ferrari didn’t finish second in the constructors’ last year as Elkann hoped, ultimately dropping to fourth. But this year, they are the nearest challengers to Mercedes, and the title isn’t yet out of the question, a testament to Hamilton’s impact.