Fred Vasseur says Lewis Hamilton is finally ‘pushing’ Charles Leclerc in Ferrari battle

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Fred Vasseur is happy that Lewis Hamilton is ‘pushing’ Charles Leclerc as it will lead to ‘positive information’

The 2025 Formula 1 season was a difficult season for Ferrari, as the Italian constructor failed to win a Grand Prix and only won a Sprint Race with Lewis Hamilton in China.

Charles Leclerc and Hamilton ended the season in fifth and sixth places in the Championship, but have had a more competitive and positive start to the 2026 campaign.

In the Australian Grand Prix, Leclerc featured on the podium as he finished in third place, and Leclerc and Hamilton were both on the Sprint Race podium in China with a second and third place finish after battling around the Shanghai International Circuit.

Fred Vasseur believes it is ‘easier to improve’ with internal competition

Ferrari team principal, Fred Vasseur, spoke to Sky Sports Germany after the Sprint Race and revealed that he was comfortable with his drivers battling, as he believes this will lead to ‘positive information’.

The Frenchman went on to compare his drivers’ relationships to the likes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes, and Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at McLaren.

Vasseur said, “I think it is much easier to improve when you have two drivers pushing each other, and bringing positive information to the team, and it has been like this since Barcelona.

“This is very positive for us, and we need to have this internal competition. I think it is good for us, it is good for Mercedes, and it is good for McLaren. It is always positive, and it simply leads to more performance.”

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in battle in China

The Ferrari’s both finished on the podium in the Sprint Race at the Chinese Grand Prix, but neither driver would back down as they were locked in a battle.

During the Sprint Race, Anthony Davidson pointed out that Leclerc was able to punish Hamilton as the British driver tried to launch a move around the outside of the Monegasque driver.

There was one point during their battle in the Sprint Race that Leclerc complained to the Ferrari garage after Hamilton moved his car from the outside to the inside at Turn Two.

However, Davidson saw no issue with Hamilton’s overtake on Leclerc as he said, “I thought it was hard but fair racing between the two Ferrari drivers.”