‘We can survive’ – Lewis Hamilton called out by Max Verstappen as Ferrari risk ‘unsafe’ rule break

Max Verstappen may be having his own teammate issues of his own, but he was quick to call out Lewis Hamilton’s similar woes in China.

The reigning four-time world champion pounced on a clash between the two Ferraris just a few corners into Sunday’s Grand Prix, which was won by McLaren's Oscar Piastri.

4

4

Hamilton led teammate Charles Leclerc and old rival Verstappen into the first set of undulating corners and when they bunched together it was the two in red that made contact.

Leclerc’s front left collided with Hamilton’s rear right, and while the Brit in fourth was lucky to avoid a puncture, the Monegasque in fifth lost part of his front wing.

“I’ve been hit by someone,” Hamilton said over team radio, and the moment was instantly noticed by Verstappen.

The Dutchman quickly informed the Red Bull pit wall: “Charles has a broken front wing!”

read more f1 news

What does Lewis Hamilton's ‘San Diego’ message mean? F1 fans decipher radio codeword

'Crying his eyes out' - Rookie consoled by Lewis Hamilton's father labelled 'embarrassing'

That shout was more than just an observation too, with commentator Martin Brundle pointing out that if a car is deemed unsafe by race stewards, they can be forced to pit and resolve the issue.

It later turned out that Leclerc's car was indeed underweight, and he was disqualified from the race alongside Hamilton whose skid block was worn below the legal limit.

Leclerc could've resolved the issue but wanted to wait until his pit stop, and even then his wing was left how it was.

“We have lost 20 to 30 points [of downforce] on the front,” his race engineer told him. “If we can survive we wait for the first stop.”

Most read in Motorsport

'I'm still his No.1 fan' - Lewis Hamilton's brother makes motorsport return

'Never become world champion' - Lando Norris handed brutal title verdict by ex-F1 driver

'Quite emotional' - Hamilton mechanic reveals Scherzinger's true impact on his F1 career

'Crush his spirit' - Red Bull confirm brutal decision that left Verstappen 'disappointed'

Leclerc steadfastly replied: “We can survive!”

Stewards show a black flag with an orange circle when car damage is deemed dangerous, a fate Kevin Magnussen regularly suffered in his Haas.

4

Yet Ferrari didn't receive such a call in China and were allowed to use both of their drivers in an effort to challenge leaders McLaren, who eventually finished one-two, with Piastri ahead of Lando Norris.

Mercedes' George Russell was third, with Verstappen in fourth ahead of Leclerc and Hamilton before their disqualification.

However, Verstappen and Red Bull picked up fewer constructors points than Mercedes, and even Haas, with their No.2, Liam Lawson, right at the back of the grid in 12th, unable to help the world champion.

The New Zealander had qualified a shocking 20th out of 20 cars after 19th in his Red Bull debut in Australia.

It continued a trend for Christian Horner's squad, who haven't had a second driver able to support Verstappen since 2017, aside from some decent form for Sergio Perez in 2021.

That's seen Red Bull twice miss out on the constructors' title despite winning the drivers' with Verstappen, who doesn't seem to happy about the lack of support.

4

Asked about sister team Racing Bulls being closer to him after qualifying, the Dutchman said: “I mean, they’re doing very well, they’re very close to me.

“Maybe that also says something, but yeah, I don’t know.”