Fred Vasseur will speak to Lewis Hamilton over comments about Max Verstappen

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Ferrari are gradually getting closer to welcoming seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton to the team. Less than half of the 2024 season remains, and come December, Hamilton can switch focus to his new surroundings.

Up to this point, both parties have largely prioritised the task at hand. Hamilton has asked Charles Leclerc occasional questions about Ferrari, but his immediate goal is to finish on a high with Mercedes.

It looked set to be a somewhat miserable farewell for the 39-year-old in the first third of the campaign. Mercedes were the fourth-fastest team on the grid, comfortably clear of the midfield but not quick enough to compete with the top three.

However, they made a breakthrough with their W15 at the Canadian GP and have been contending at the front since. George Russell won in Austria, and Hamilton ended a victory drought stretching back to the end of 2021 at Silverstone.

Ferrari’s fortunes, meanwhile, have gone in the opposite direction. At the start of the year, it looked as if they would be the first team to catch Red Bull.

The Scuderia won two of their first eight races, but have now fallen behind McLaren and Mercedes in the pecking order after losing their way in the development battle. Fred Vasseur’s main concern at the moment is ironing out the aerodynamic issues with the SF-24.

Fred Vasseur asked about Lewis Hamilton’s criticism of Max Verstappen conduct

Hamilton secured his third podium of the season at the Hungaroring last time out. He had to fend off furious competition from Max Verstappen, culminating in late contact.

Verstappen had to hold clear-the-air talks with Gianpiero Lambiase, his race engineer, after a series of furious radio messages during the race. Speaking ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix (Sky Sports), Hamilton called for the Dutchman to ‘act like a world champion’.

During the team principals’ press conference on Friday, Vasseur was asked for his response to these comments. He seemed to disagree with Hamilton, pointing out that F1 drivers are being recorded at the most intense moments.

Nonetheless, Vasseur plans to speak to the Englishman at some stage to gauge his views. It’s unclear how regularly they’re in contact in the lead-up to Hamilton’s arrival.

• READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

“I don’t see the link with Lewis on this, I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t know if I have to be politically correct or not, but at the end of the day, we have also to keep in mind that we are the only sport in the world where the guys are speaking on the radio during the effort or the race.

“I’m not sure that if you put a microphone on a football player, it would be much better. Even on the referee sometimes.

“It means that we have also to calm down with this. Or we have to switch off the microphone, but I’m not sure that it will be a step forward for the show. But I will discuss with Lewis about it.”

What people ‘within the paddock’ are now saying about Hamilton to Ferrari

Initially it seemed as if Hamilton had pulled off a masterstroke by switching to Ferrari. Mercedes appeared to be as far from the front as ever, and the Prancing Horse was on the charge.

But the competitive picture has now shifted rather dramatically. And according to BBC Sport’s Jennie Gow, people ‘within the paddock’ believe Hamilton is making a mistake.

His transition could be easier if longtime engineer Peter Bonnington follows him to Maranello. But Ferrari haven’t held any talks with Bonnington just yet.

It may be that he remains at Mercedes and works with the new driver instead. Hamilton has spoken to Sebastian Vettel about Riccardo Adami, Carlos Sainz’s right-hand man, which may be telling.