Lewis Hamilton believes Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc races him harder than other drivers on the Formula 1 grid. Hamilton and Leclerc's clash on the opening lap of last weekend's race in Mexico City cost Ferrari a likely victory, and potential one-two, with Max Verstappen instead ultimately profiting to claim victory for Red Bull. Speaking after the race, Hamilton said the team needed "serious talks" to discuss the way forward in such incidents, while also calling Leclerc's approach in such moments into question.
Some pundits have since suggested that Leclerc appears to race Hamilton particularly aggressively, comparing what happened in Mexico to the first corner at the Singapore Grand Prix last month when the Monegasque went head to head for the lead with Verstappen. Asked it he also saw it that way, Hamilton replied: "Yes. Singapore, he was fully [alongside], wheel to wheel, fully on the inside for the lead at Turn 1 Singapore, and I think it was definitely different.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player "But, I mean, if you look at the team-mates, it was the same with Sebastian [Vettel], it was the same with Carlos [Sainz]." Hamilton and Leclerc have largely appeared to enjoy a friendly relationship during their first two years as team-mates, but there have been flash points on track this year. They included a costly incident on the first lap of the team's home race at Monza in September, when Hamilton was forced onto the gravel as the two cars went side by side at the first chicane in a clash his team-mate subsequently apologised for. On Leclerc, Hamilton said: "He's been here a long time, is it eight years?
"He is very much embedded within the team, and I knew that it would always be a challenge. "I've always respected that when I've approached the team. I've really worked hard to build a good relationship with Charles and bridge the gap and make sure that we're harmonious and we work hard together.
"I've always tried to be respectful, and so naturally it's not so easy having someone like me come into a team because I'm very outspoken and I push and push and push, push for so many changes, and I'm going to be pushing for more. "And as long as I'm here, that's how it's going to be. I'm here to win, and to be able to win, you have to work with everyone around you.
"We're all rowing, trying to get everyone to row at the same pace and also the same strength. And you have to push, and I have to push, I have to be pushed also to elevate. We all can always elevate and be better.
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