Damon Hill urges Ferrari to name Lewis Hamilton number one driver
Damon Hill demands Ferrari designate Lewis Hamilton as the clear number one driver to resolve team conflict. Hamilton leads Charles Leclerc by 14 points after a chaotic Mexican Grand Prix where Leclerc received a penalty for gaining an advantage.
The 1996 world champion Damon Hill has called for Ferrari to designate Lewis Hamilton as its clear number one driver, a move he argues will end the ongoing battle with Charles Leclerc. This demand follows a chaotic opening lap at the Mexican Grand Prix where both drivers ran off the track at Turn 4. Leclerc cut across the circuit to retake the lead but received a five-second penalty for gaining a lasting advantage. Max Verstappen won the race for Red Bull, leaving Hamilton in second place and Leclerc in fourth. Hamilton finished 0.799 seconds behind the winner after missing out on a victory that was within his grasp. He made his displeasure clear over team radio, accusing the team of giving Leclerc the win with the light sanction.
Hill posted on social media that Ferrari must "sort it out" and make the hierarchy "clear" to end all debate. He stated that Hamilton "will deliver for Ferrari" if the team backs him 100 percent. The seven-time world champion leads his teammate by 14 points in the drivers’ standings this season, having claimed wins in Barcelona and Britain respectively. In contrast, Leclerc outscored Hamilton by 86 points during the previous year. Hamilton questioned the lack of formal rules of engagement at the Scuderia and vowed he would not be silenced ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix. His frustration stems from repeated clashes at Monza and Zandvoort, where similar incidents cost the team potential results.
Brundle sees a strategic shift
Martin Brundle believes Hamilton is using the fallout from Mexico City to carve out more clout inside the team. The pundit described Leclerc’s attempt around the outside of Turn 4 as a 75-25 move against his teammate that was simply not smart. He noted that the incident did not give a Ferrari driver the win but handed the victory to Verstappen instead. Brundle argued that Hamilton realized there is a platform to strengthen his position and is not going to let that go. He compared the situation to the combustible years between Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, where dramatic spats forced the team to draw up formal guidelines.
Brundle pointed out that modern F1 teams now employ 2,000 people, making it difficult for individual sports persons to measure their standing within such a large environment. He drew parallels with the recent dynamics at McLaren involving Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, suggesting this is a new challenge for drivers seeking clarity. Hamilton agreed with claims that Leclerc races him harder than rivals from other teams, pointing to how Leclerc backed off from a wheel-to-wheel battle with Verstappen in Singapore. The 41-year-old said, "Yes. You can see what you see," when asked if his teammate applies different pressure. Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur confirmed that talks took place on Thursday night at Interlagos, though the existing guidelines remain unchanged. Carlos Sainz added that high tension is inevitable between two good drivers fighting for wins, citing examples from Mercedes and McLaren.
