Fred Vasseur isn’t worried about what Lewis Hamilton or Charles Leclerc say over the radio, or even their words to the media. For him, it’s all about the “content of the debrief” after the Grand Prix.

Tensions seemed, at least from the outside, to mount at Ferrari at the Miami Grand Prix when Hamilton got snappy with his race engineer Riccardo Adami.

Ferrari team boss downplays Lewis Hamilton’s radio tension

Hamilton was not happy when he ran behind Leclerc, telling Ferrari to take a “tea break” as they decided on team orders, nor was he impressed when, having been allowed to overtake Leclerc, he was told to give the position back.

That he then, by his own admission, told Vasseur to “calm down, don’t be so sensitive” when they spoke after the race, only added to suggestions of growing tension between the seven-time World Champion and his new team boss.

“I could have said way worse things on the radio,” Hamilton told the media, including PlanetF1.com. “You hear some of the things others have said in the past, some of it was sarcasm.”

Ferrari: F1 2025 head-to-head stats

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates

👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates

But while Vasseur was quick to downplay the heated radio messages and subsequent sit-down with his driver, adamant that was “not the story of the day”, Ferrari did hold a full debriefing with both Hamilton and his team-mate Leclerc.

“I’m never upset with this,” he told Sky Sports of Hamilton’s post-race frustrations, “as long as we are able to have a good discussion after.

“We have to keep in mind that they have to jump on the radio driving in Miami at 330(kph) between the walls, under the pressure with the result.

“They are not happy sometimes with the result or with the strategy or with the balance of the car, and they are live for millions of people. Most important for me is the content of the debrief.”

Vasseur concedes the SF-25 is not up to scratch with Ferrari trailing in both title races. While Leclerc is 78 points off the pace in the Drivers’ standings, Hamilton a further 12 off the pace, Ferrari are 152 down on McLaren are just six races in the F1 2025 season.

“The car is not at the level that we were expecting,” said the Frenchman. “If you compare to last year, for example, it means that we are not in an ideal situation. And I think in this situation, it’s even more difficult for a new driver to adapt to the car.

“I think if you are flying and winning every single weekend, it’s much easier for them to adapt to the team.

“But I would say that as long as the collaboration is positive and constructive, even if it’s not of use each weekend in terms of the result, I think we are improving understanding of each other, not just with me but the technical side. I think this is going in the right direction and I’m quite confident for the future.”

Vasseur concedes they are already past the point where big upgrades are possible, given F1 2026’s all-new regulations. He is, however, hoping that Spain’s new flexi-wing regulations could swing the balance in Ferrari’s favour.

“We are at the point where it’s difficult to do a big upgrade on the car because after four years with the same regulations we are more fighting for details.

“The biggest one probably will be Spain because we have a clear change of regulation with the complete new front wing. This could change a little bit the picture of the championship. Let’s wait for this.

“It could be a reset on the immediate picture, but not on the championship. The guy who will lead the championship in Spain will still lead the championship after Spain, but, in terms of pure performance, it could be a gamechanger.”

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