Lewis Hamilton behaviour questioned by iconic Ferrari F1 star

Former Ferrari racer Jean Alesi has questioned Lewis Hamilton's behaviour during the Italian Grand Prix weekend.

Heading into the weekend, Hamilton had a five-place grid drop to serve after a penalty was carried over from the Dutch GP, where he had crashed out of the race.

That meant that a strong grid position was not necessarily achievable for Hamilton in his pursuit of a podium in his first Italian GP as a Ferrari driver in front of the adoring tifosi.

In the end, Hamilton qualified fifth, meaning he started down in 10th, and recovered well to finish the race in sixth and further cement Ferrari's second-place standing in the constructors' championship.

However, with Charles Leclerc not set to serve a penalty, it was thought that Hamilton might give his team-mate a tow in Q3, which could potentially help Leclerc get in amongst the McLarens and challenge for pole position.

Monza is a track where a slipstream down the two long straights can mean a difference of a few tenths if executed correctly, but Hamilton did not play the team game, and instead both Leclerc and Hamilton were left to their own devices.

Now Alesi, who raced with Ferrari between 1991-1995, has questioned Hamilton's decision not to give Leclerc a helping hand.

"I didn't like Hamilton's behaviour," Alesi told Corriere della Serra, via Sky Germany. "He really could have, and perhaps even should have, helped Leclerc in qualifying."

Hamilton's 2025 qualifying woes

The fact that Hamilton is still yet to claim a grand prix podium with Ferrari since joining in January 2025 is arguably down to his qualifying form.

Hamilton has been beaten by Leclerc on 12 occasions out of 16 so far, and that explains the 46-point gap between the drivers in the championship.

That comes after a 2024 season when Hamilton was comprehensively beaten by Mercedes team-mate George Russell in qualifying too.

Hamilton explained why he did not give Leclerc a tow in an interview: "This isn't something I would have ever done in my previous teams," he said. "Ultimately, it potentially comes down to sacrificing a driver, and I already have the penalty. In terms of championship points, I need to start as far up the grid as possible."

If Hamilton is to get back into race-winning and championship-contending form, the seven-time champion will need to start beating his team-mate in qualifying regularly.

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