Ferrari boss admits Lewis Hamilton making things worse for the team with his extreme reactions

Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur has admitted that Lewis Hamilton's extreme reaction in the media does end up making things worse for the team. When the 7x F1 champion announced last season that he was moving to the Italian team in 2025, the move was met with a lot of anticipation.

It was going to be a partnership of the most successful driver in F1 history with the most successful team. Even in January, when Lewis Hamilton first posted pictures outside of Maranello, it was met with a lot of fanfare.

The 2025 F1 season, however, has not gone to plan in any way. Ferrari was expected to build a car with which Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc could fight for the title. As it turns out, the car is just not good enough.

What's worse is the fact that the driver has found it hard to keep up with Charles Leclerc as well. So much so that at the F1 Hungarian GP, where Lewis Hamilton was eliminated in Q2 and Charles Leclerc secured pole, the Brit lashed out in front of the media and claimed that Ferrari should think about replacing him.

Fortunately, it was the last race before the summer break, hence the headline did not continue into the next few weeks. Talking to AMuS, however, Fred Vasseur does admit that the extreme reactions do make things worse for Ferrari. Talking about what he would tell his driver, he said,

“Stay calm. Build on the fact that he has already taken the first step. Don’t let things like what happened in Budapest get you down. Lewis is very self-critical. He is always extreme in his reactions. Sometimes he is too hard on the car, sometimes on himself."

He added,

“He wants to get the most out of himself and everyone in the team. You have to calm him down and explain to him that in Q2 [in Hungary] he was only a tenth behind the driver [Leclerc] who took pole position. That’s no big deal. The message he sends out only makes things worse."

Lewis Hamilton is only extreme with the press

Talking about his driver, Fred Vasseur reveals that Lewis Hamilton's extreme reactions more often than not did not percolate from the media to the team. After he's said his piece in front of the media, the Brit tends to be a lot calmer with the team. He said,

“Most of the time, he’s only that extreme with the press. By the time he comes into the briefing room, he’s usually calmed down again. That’s just his way. For me, it’s no big deal. He demands a lot. From others, but also from himself. I can live with that.”

The first few races after the summer break will be crucial for Lewis Hamilton. The driver would be desperate to gain a better understanding of the car and put together a few results over teammate Charles Leclerc and build some momentum.