MONTREAL, June 13 — Lewis Hamilton yesterday slammed Italian media speculation that Ferrari are poised to dismiss team boss Fred Vasseur and that he is considering his future with the team as total “nonsense”.
The seven-time world champion asked reporters to “stop making stuff up” as he delivered an impassioned response to the reports on the eve of this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, an event he has won a record-equalling seven times.
“To everyone that’s writing stories of me considering not racing, I’ve literally only just started with Ferrari,” he said during a news conference at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
“I’m here for several years. I’m here for the long haul so there’s no question about where my head’s at and what I’m working towards achieving with this team.
“There are zero doubts so, please, stop making up stuff.”
Italian media stories had suggested Vasseur was responsible for the team’s disappointing start to the season when they had been expected to challenge McLaren for the championship.
After nine races, with Hamilton, 40, brought in as a marquee signing to lead a title bid, the team languish 197 points behind McLaren in the teams’ title race while Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are winless in a drivers’ championship led by the two McLaren drivers.
Hamilton said: “I was made aware of this just before I got here so I’ve not read the stories and it’s definitely not nice to hear that there are stories like that out there.
“Firstly, I love working with Fred. Fred’s the main reason I’m in this team and I got the opportunity to be here, for which I’m forever grateful, and we’re in this together.
“We’re working hard in the background. Things aren’t perfect, but for me, as I’ve said, I’m here to work with the team, but also with Fred.
“I want Fred here. I do believe Fred is the person to take us to the top. So this, ultimately, is nonsense what people have written.”
Vasseur exit ‘not on cards’
When asked about the possible exit of Vasseur, he added: “I don’t think that’s on the cards as far as I’m aware and it’s certainly not something I would be supportive of.
“Embedding new people, new personnel, whether it’s a driver, or whether it’s engineers or people who run an organisation, it takes time to adjust and the impact that has is significant.
“So that’s not part of the discussion. I’m here to win with Fred and he has my full support.”
Earlier, Carlos Sainz, the driver Hamilton replaced at Ferrari, had also launched a strong defence of Vasseur and, like Hamilton, blamed the media for stirring up a crisis that did not exist.
“Same story as always, the moment that the results don’t click in Ferrari, there’s always finger-pointing by the media, and all this chaos happening,” said Sainz, who now races for the rapidly improving Williams team.
He added that despite being replaced in the team, he had no ill will towards Ferrari or Vasseur.
“If you ask me, about Fred, well I have a great relationship with him. Obviously, we went through a tough month where he didn’t want me and he signed Lewis, but apart from that, we made peace.” — AFP
