Lewis Hamilton has insisted he does not believe he can work any harder to help improve Ferrari’s performance, after being rebuked by the team president John Elkann. Elkann had told the 40-year-old to “focus on driving and talk less” following Hamilton’s description of his debut season with Ferrari as “a nightmare”.
Speaking before the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Hamilton said his relationship with Elkann remained “great” but rejected the suggestion that he should concentrate more on his driving. “Not really, I wake up thinking about it and I go to sleep thinking about it and I think about it when I’m sleeping,” he said. “It’s been the busiest year that I think I’ve had.”
Hamilton emphasised that fixing Ferrari’s issues would take time. “You can’t fix it in the click of a finger,” he said, noting the size of the organisation and the number of moving parts. He added that the team had “just continued to push on, full steam” despite a disappointing season.
Hamilton is sixth in the drivers’ championship, 66 points behind his teammate Charles Leclerc. Leclerc said Elkann had explained his comments were not a criticism but a reflection of his desire to win. Ferrari is currently fourth in the constructors’ championship.
The Las Vegas race is the 22nd of the season, with cold and wet conditions expected to make it challenging for all competitors. Lando Norris leads the drivers’ championship by 24 points from Oscar Piastri and 49 ahead of Max Verstappen.
