Italian media DEFEND Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari civil war

The Italian media have leapt to the defence of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc after Ferrari chairman John Elkann took aim at the two F1 stars.

Hamilton and Leclerc both failed to finish the Brazilian GP, with the Monegasque star being tagged by Kimi Antonelli after a collision with Oscar Piastri and the champion made contact with both Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto.

Following the Brazilian GP, Ferrari slipped behind Mercedes and Red Bull into fourth in the constructors’ championship, with Elkann reflecting on the result to the media after the race weekend.

While praising the engineers and mechanics at Ferrari, Elkkan also added: “And we definitely have drivers who need to focus on driving and talk less because we still have important races ahead of us and getting second place is not impossible.”

Both Hamilton and Leclerc have presented a united front, reaffirming their commitment to Ferrari in separate social media posts, but Elkann’s comments have promoted wider discourse in the F1 community.

Italian media defend Hamilton

Hamilton and Leclerc have found support from a wide range of individuals from F1 fans to Sky Sports pundits Jenson Button, Ted Kravitz and Karun Chandhok.

Now, the Italian media also jumped to both drivers’ defence with publication La Gazzetta dello Sport, slamming Ferrari for failing to win a championship.

They wrote: “The truth is that this harsh outburst against Leclerc and Hamilton is inexplicable, given that Ferrari hasn't won the drivers' title since 2007 and the constructors' title since 2008.”

Alongside La Gazzetta, Italian publication Corriere della Sera also supported Hamilton and Leclerc, particularly in regards to how they have dealt with their disappointment in 2025 when speaking to the media.

“F1 drivers are international stars. Exposed men. To risk, to judgment,” Corriere wrote.

“They are called upon to communicate constantly: to the media, sponsors, organizers. They step out of their cars after extreme stress and find themselves faced with notebooks and microphones. They speak of necessity.

“Even when they remain silent, when they can't pretend. They do everything they can not to express their true feelings during a season like this, stingy with gratification.”

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