Formula 1 has claimed it didn’t intend to “present a misleading narrative” in the Chinese Grand Prix amid Ferrari‘s irritation at how select team radio was broadcasted.
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur blasted the manner in which Formula One Management [FOM] depicted the exchange that culminated in the side’s drivers swapping places.
Lewis Hamilton was struggling in the race when he told his race engineer Riccardo Adami that he was contemplating allowing his team-mate Charles Leclerc through.
However, FOM didn’t broadcast Hamilton’s initial consideration on the world feed and then also omitted the original dialogue regarding a switch happening at Turn 14.
Adami repeating that call to Hamilton was aired, providing the impression that the Briton was disputing a team order as he stated that Leclerc had to be closer to him.
Vasseur was angered with how the situation was televised as it excluded that Hamilton had been the one who proposed to Ferrari that it was worth letting Leclerc go.
“This is a joke from FOM, because the first call came from Lewis – that Lewis asked us to swap,” Vasseur said.
“But to make the show, to create the mess around the situation, they broadcast only the second part of the question.”
F1 responds to Ferrari complaint
But F1 denied that the show was prioritised in that instance, citing that other action on the track took precedence over Hamilton’s discussion with Adami at that point.
“There was absolutely no intention of presenting a misleading narrative regarding the Ferrari team radio,” an F1 spokesperson said.
“Due to other situations developing during the race the message from Lewis was not played, but this was not intentional.”
The circumstance F1 alluded to that triggered Hamilton to delibrate over the change appeared to surround his gap to George Russell’s Mercedes ahead coming down.
But he would relinquish the position to Leclerc, who hunted down Russell even with a broken endplate that he picked up when he tagged Hamilton on the opening lap.
However, the Monegasque was unable to overtake the Briton and then dropped back at an alarming rate into Max Verstappen’s clutches to cross the line in fifth place.
The saga became insignificant regardless as both cars were disqualified. Leclerc’s SF-25 was underweight, while Hamilton’s plank exceeded the maximum allowance.
READ MORE – Ferrari brands F1 broadcast of radio messages ‘a joke’ after false Lewis Hamilton narrative
