Leclerc points to Mexico layout after Hamilton duel; Vasseur says it is no excuse

After the Mexico City Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc said he and Lewis Hamilton would have braked earlier during their opening-lap battle if a wall had stood at the exit of Turn 4. Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged that the circuit layout did not help, but said it could not excuse what happened.

Hamilton started on pole and Leclerc third; by Turn 4 they were first and second, with Leclerc attacking his team-mate around the outside. Leclerc went across the grass, cut Turn 5 and took the lead as Max Verstappen passed Hamilton. A five-second penalty dropped Leclerc to fourth. Verstappen won ahead of Hamilton and Kimi Antonelli.

For the start and any restarts in Mexico, the stewards had determined that drivers would be treated as both attackers and defenders. Standard penalties would apply for gaining an advantage off track at Turns 1–3 and 4–6.

Leclerc said drivers had discussed the issue at Thursday’s briefing before the race. He argued for circuit changes that would remove opportunities to take such risks on the inside and make decisions easier.

Vasseur said similar problems had occurred at the circuit in previous years, but added that the layout “can't be an excuse at all”. He said Ferrari had taken a step forward in performance over recent events and described missing out on victory as frustrating for the 2,000 people working on the project.