Hamilton Says Ferrari Clash With Leclerc Is 'Squashed'

Lewis Hamilton has said he and Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc have "squashed" the controversy that followed their clash at the Italian Grand Prix, according to BBC Sport. The two drivers spoke after the race at Monza, and Hamilton described the talks as positive.

Speaking ahead of the next round of the season, Hamilton confirmed that Ferrari still operates without written rules of engagement between its two drivers, the Guardian reported. He noted that the arrangement differs from his years at Mercedes, where, in his words, the team had written rules.

The Monza flashpoint had followed a pattern familiar to followers of Ferrari: two drivers on the same strategy, a closing window in the race, and a team left to explain the outcome afterwards. Hamilton had called for the team to introduce formal rules in the immediate aftermath, which made his later confirmation that none exist the more notable.

Hamilton's comparison with Mercedes is the clearest signal of how he reads the situation. At Brackley, the ordering of drivers was codified — a document that told both men when to hold position and when to race. At Maranello, according to the Guardian, that codification has not been adopted, leaving the boundary to be negotiated race by race.

The distinction matters for Ferrari's championship arithmetic. With two drivers capable of winning, a team without written rules risks losing points to its own internal contest, particularly in the closing laps of a race where a pit wall must choose quickly. The BBC's Formula 1 coverage has framed the Monza weekend as one where that choice was made under maximum pressure, in front of the team's home crowd.

Hamilton's own account, as reported by the Guardian, is that the issue is behind him. "When I was at Mercedes we had written rules," he said, adding that the positive talks with Leclerc had resolved the immediate tension. Whether the team formalises anything before the next race remains open, but the driver's public position is that no document is required.

For the wider grid, the episode is a reminder of how much of a modern title fight is decided off the track. Rival teams watch for signs of division at Maranello, and any repeat of the Monza wheel-to-wheel moment will be read as evidence that the informal arrangement has limits. The next race will be the first test of whether the talks hold.