Ferrari Demands Lewis Hamilton To “Calm down” After Las Vegas GP rant

Ferrari's Fred Vasseur has asked Lewis Hamilton to calm down and not jump to criticizing his race pace following Las Vegas GP rant.

Ferrari Demands Lewis Hamilton To “Calm down” After Las Vegas GP rant

Lewis Hamilton and Fred Vasseur (via F1)

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The Las Vegas GP was one of the worst outings for Lewis Hamilton despite a P8 finish following McLaren’s double DSQ. The weekend began on a disappointing note for the Briton as he started the race from dead last.

Following the culmination of the race, Hamilton said some critical words about himself and Ferrari as a whole. Now, Team Principal Fred Vasseur has responded to the 40-year-old’s comments and asked him to calm down amid the issues.

After finishing the Las Vegas GP in P10, Lewis Hamilton claimed that the entire race was meaningless for him, and achieving a point finish despite a P20 start wasn’t good enough for him.

The Briton had already labeled his debut year with Maranello as a nightmare, with even the Ferrari chairman, John Elkann, asking the drivers to focus on driving more and talking less. Now, even Fred Vasseur has issued some similar comments and asked Hamilton to get his head in the game.

Fred Vasseur fired some shots at Lewis Hamilton and how he was bound to be on the back foot for the entirety of the race after starting the race from P20. Vasseur noted that the race was difficult because of the P20 start. Though the Frenchman highlighted that Hamilton had a decent first part of the race when he gained multiple positions at the beginning.

Fred Vasseur did accept that Ferrari struggled more than expected on the medium stints. Regardless, the team principal urged that Hamilton, including everyone, should calm down for now. Vasseur further noted that to jump directly out of the car and comment on the race pace was a bit too much for the 40-year-old.

As such, the Team Principal asked the Briton to wait atleast until the debrief and then discuss the situation throughout the race and ultimately calm down and focus on the upcoming races.

The main issue was [qualifying], and when you start P20, for sure the race is difficult, but at the end of the day, he had a decent first part of the race. We struggled a bit more on the mediums, but for now, we have to calm down. To jump out of the car and make the first comments, it is always a bit too much, so let’s discuss after the debrief. I understand the reaction from Lewis just after the race, but you have to calm down and be focused on the next two [races]. 

Fred Vasseur said, as reported by RacingNews365.

Fred Vasseur accepts Ferrari “needs to improve” amid Lewis Hamilton criticism

Ferrari is certainly not going through a positive period in Formula 1, and they seem not to be finding any improvements in their performance either. The team has already lost the P3 spot in the constructors’ championship, and they need to improve quickly. Although Fred Vasseur isn’t too happy with Lewis Hamilton’s comments, he accepts the bitter truth and discusses the need for improvement within the team.

Lewis Hamilton, Fred Vasseur and Charles Leclerc (via Getty)
Lewis Hamilton, Fred Vasseur and Charles Leclerc (via Getty)

Fred Vasseur recalled that during the practice sessions, Lewis Hamilton had good pace, and the team had a chance to achieve good results. However, starting from P20 meant that he wasn’t going to score the best results possible. Though Vasseur noted that the team doesn’t need to completely change their approach, even though they were struggling to have a clean weekend.

[You should] keep in mind that Lewis was there in FP1 and FP2, and the pace was good, and we have to build the weekend up, and starting P20 is not the best way to have good results. We don’t have to change completely, we are struggling to have a clean weekend, For sure, we have to improve on performance, but it is clear it is more about the way we build up the weekend.

Fred Vasseur noted.

The 2025 season has been nothing short of a nightmare for Ferrari, and they certainly aren’t finding an out of the problems. Lewis Hamilton has shifted his focus to the upcoming season and hopes to emerge as a winning force by then. For now, Hamilton aims to finish the season on the best possible note and put an end to his nightmare debut with Maranello.

Read More: Lewis Hamilton Brands His Las Vegas GP Recovery from P20 As “Most Meaningless” Ever