Hamilton's Ferrari boss under scrutiny as F1 star questions Vasseur's authority

Former F1 star Juan Pablo Montoya has questioned how much power Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur actually has after yet more drama between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

That drama came at the Mexican Grand Prix a week and a half ago, where Hamilton and Leclerc battled hard on the opening lap, and it ended up costing Ferrari big time.

Leclerc was given a penalty after they both ran off track while fighting for the lead, and post-race, Hamilton stated his belief that their opening lap scuffle is ultimately what handed Max Verstappen the victory.

Hamilton also called for 'serious talks' behind the scenes and got his wish ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, but team principal Fred Vasseur has since insisted that nothing has changed in terms of their rules of engagement.

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Montoya questions Vasseur's power at Ferrari

Some reports in Italy have suggested that Ferrari chairman John Elkann was forced to step in amid the tension, with he and Ferrari's other shareholders giving Vasseur strict guidance to follow in the Hamilton-Leclerc talks.

Now, speaking via AS ahead of Brazil, seven-time grand prix winner Montoya questioned Vasseur's authority.

"Well, you know what the thing is? We don't see the internal meetings. So how can you go after Fred without knowing what Fred is doing?" Montoya questioned. "From the outside, you would say – you would assume – that yes, he needs to be tougher. But it would be very unfair to say that about Fred without knowing how Fred operates internally. Do you understand what I mean?

"It's very easy for us to stand here, talking and saying, 'Oh, Fred needs to be tougher'. We don't know what happens internally, whether Fred... I mean, first of all, whether Fred is actually the person making those decisions at that moment, whether it's someone else handling it, someone higher up, or something like that.

"Because remember, at Ferrari, they don't stop at Fred. At Ferrari, decisions are made much higher up."

Montoya continued, comparing Vasseur to Mercedes' deputy team principal Bradley Lord, suggesting that if the Ferrari boss wants to do anything, he has to run it by those above him for approval.

"To me, Fred is the team principal, yes, but you look at Fred more like Bradley [Lord] at Mercedes, who's the deputy team principal," Montoya continued. "From the outside, you don't see Fred – at least, I don't see Fred – as the sole person in charge.

"I think that if Fred wanted to do something really significant, he'd have to say, 'Listen, can I do this?' Do you understand what I mean? Whereas [Mercedes boss] Toto [Wolff] doesn't have to do that."

Just how things shake out in the long term at Ferrari remains to be seen, with both Hamilton and Leclerc continuing to share being the team's number one.

There was no more drama in Brazil last time out, but you'd be amazed if Mexico was the end of it given the previous incidents in the Netherlands and Italy this year.

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