To hold a one-two finish at a circuit where passing is a near-impossibility should be a guaranteed victory. Instead, a chaotic opening lap at the Mexico City Grand Prix turned a dream scenario into a massive own goal for Ferrari, leaving Team Principal Fred Vasseur openly frustrated with his drivers.
From the start, the hardest work was already finished. Polesitter Lewis Hamilton defended his spot down the drag to Turn 1, while Charles Leclerc launched his SF-26 from third on the grid to jump George Russell and slot neatly into second. For a few brief moments, the red cars commanded the top two positions. Then came the tight Turn 4. Both drivers ran wide fighting for the exact same piece of tarmac. Charles Leclerc cut across the grass to grab the lead, while Lewis Hamilton lost all his momentum after rejoining the track and fell prey to Max Verstappen.
I think we can discuss ages for this, but it's not a matter to discuss before if you are on the right-hand side, if you are on the left-hand side. My only discussion, it's a matter of respect,
“The layout of the track for sure is not helping,” Fred Vasseur said. “Because if you have a look, the last couple of years we had this kind of issue. But it can't be an excuse at all.”
Charles Leclerc kept his position initially, trying to build a gap before taking a five-second penalty, which eventually cost him the lead to Max Verstappen during the stops. After a red flag interruption, Lewis Hamilton climbed back to second position, but overtaking the RB22 proved impossible amid tricky temperature management. Charles Leclerc locked up at the restart and narrowly held on to take fourth at the flag, rounding off a P2 and P4 result that felt bitterly disappointing given the car's genuine pace.
“Honestly, I'm a bit frustrated, because I think we did a proper step forward in terms of performance the last couple of events, and we were one-two at Turn 4,” Fred Vasseur stated. “I don't remember the last overtaking in Mexico, perhaps at the end of the seventies. And when you are one-two at Turn 4, you don't imagine that you don't win the race. It's a lot of frustration for me, but I'm not the most important. I think it's a lot of frustration for the 2,000 people working for the project – and this I will need time to digest.”
When asked about pre-race agreements regarding first lap protocols, the Ferrari boss made it clear that rules matter far less than professional courtesy. “I think we can discuss ages for this, but it's not a matter to discuss before if you are on the right-hand side, if you are on the left-hand side. My only discussion, it's a matter of respect,” he explained, adding that the drivers need to remember the factory staff working night and day on upgrades.
Charles Leclerc pointed to a lack of clear direction from the pit wall on whether to hand the place back immediately. Fred Vasseur admitted that communicating with race control takes time, meaning the five-second delay on video feeds makes split-second calls nearly impossible before Turn 11. Regardless, the team boss noted that the regulations dictate giving the position back, and the drivers had agreed beforehand to handle that scenario themselves.
Despite the friction and Lewis Hamilton's radio remarks about "big problems," Fred Vasseur preferred to keep internal discussions private. Positives certainly exist—the pure performance of the car has taken a clear step forward, marking several consecutive weekends outscoring rivals and securing pole position. With another race looming in four days, the Scuderia has little time to dwell on the missed opportunity before heading to Sao Paulo.
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