> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.the-race.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Ferrari drivers set for crunch meeting in Brazil - URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-drivers-set-for-crunch-meeting-in-brazil/ - Published: 2026-11-05T19:48:42.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-05T19:56:10.000Z - Description: Ferrari will have a crunch meeting with its drivers on Friday in Brazil, as Lewis Hamilton vows "I'll never be silenced". - Author: Jon Noble - Tags: Formula 1, #lewis-hamilton, #charles-leclerc, #ferrari, #primary_homepage_feature Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur will get his Formula 1 drivers together in Brazil to discuss their costly opening-lap dice in Mexico, as Lewis Hamilton vows "I'll never be silenced". Charles Leclerc and Hamilton fought each other hard on the opening lap in Mexico, allowing Max Verstappen to steal away what Ferrari believed was a likely victory. Hamilton called into question Leclerc's racecraft after the race, saying he has a "do or die" mentality and a long history of fighting his team-mates too hard. Ferrari felt that their battle crossed a line with team boss Vasseurtelling Canal+ on Sunday evening that it was evidence of a "lack of respect" to Ferrari's employees. The Race understands Vasseur is planning to sit Hamilton and Leclerc down together on Friday in Brazil to discuss the matter. Vasseur spoke to both drivers individually after the race in Mexico, but he's planned a proper sit-down for Brazil when they're all in the same place. Leclerc missed Thursday media day in Brazil after announcing [the birth of his and his wife Alexandra's child](https://www.the-race.com/extra/charles-and-alexandra-leclerc-welcome-their-first-child/%C2%A0) on Wednesday, so a meeting earlier in the Brazil weekend wasn't possible. With Leclerc absent, only Hamilton faced the media on Thursday, where he doubled down on his criticism of Leclerc. Asked whether he agreed that Leclerc races him harder than other drivers, with the example of Leclerc backing out of passing Max Verstappen at the start in Singapore used as a comparison, Hamilton replied "Yes." He added: "I can say what you see. Singapore, he was fully wheel to wheel, fully on the inside, had won the lead in Turn 1 in Singapore and backed off. "Definitely \[races them\] different. If you look at the team-mates, it's the same with Sebastian \[Vettel\], it's the same with Carlos \[Sainz\]." Hamilton made it clear he isn't going to change his outspoken approach, including over the team radio when he was asking if Leclerc had been penalised on lap one for cutting the track. "How have my comments have been taken? I don't know. I don't really care how everyone feels about what I've said," Hamilton added. "I wear my heart on my sleeve and I say how I feel in the moment. I think one thing that I would like to...I did see something that someone was saying that it's calculated, the things that I'm saying. "I just want to combat that with the fact that when you're in the race, your heart rate is like 170\[beats per minute\]. You're driving at 200 miles an hour. You don't have time to be calculating what you're saying and thinking \[what\] you're saying to the media. You don't think about that. "Usually your frustration comes out towards the people in the team, particularly the bosses about decisions. And also the stewards have always asked us to voice when we have…If there's an issue on the track, for example. You get held up, you get blocked, they ask you to voice it. "An example is, if you look in Mexico, one of the practice sessions, \[Isack\] Hadjar, backed off on the racing line into Turn 1, I didn't say anything. They didn't look into it. If I had spoken, like throwing my hands up, for example, they would have investigated and he would have got a penalty, because it was impeding. "So it is important to make sure you're open. Of course, there's some times you say things and maybe you might regret it afterwards, but I don't. I'm never going to apologise for being authentic and real. I'm never going to be silenced. "I've not been asked to not say anything. And that's just the way it is." Hamilton says he's "really worked hard to build a good relationship with Charles", knowing Leclerc is "very much embedded within the team" after eight years driving for Ferrari. "I've always tried to be respectful," Hamilton said. "Naturally, it's not so easy having someone like me come into a team because I'm very outspoken and I push and push and push, push for so many changes. And I'm going to be pushing for more. And as long as I'm here, that's how it's going to be. I'm here to win. To be able to win, you have to work with everyone around you." ## Hamilton's approach to the meeting Hamilton insists he "fully understands my responsibility to the team" and said he's "always trying to show my appreciation for them and my absolute utmost to help push the team forwards and I feel like I've been a big part of where we are today as a team, which is positive". He said they "haven't had a time to sit down all face-to-face because Fred's been back in Maranello and Charles has been back in Monaco. "But we will have a sit-down. I don't think everything's going to get squashed and sorted out in one meeting. But it is important. "What we build now will put us in the right position for next year. And in some ways, I'm glad we've had that experience. Of course I'd rather have won and had a 1-2\. But from that, you can learn. "I really do believe that next year we can be fighting for world championships. That is the sole goal. So right now, in the background, my focus is on continuing to hold on to the performance we've picked up in the last few races in terms of execution and then working on next year's car. "I obviously can't do anything about the engine, except for just push them and they'll continue to push in the background, I believe they are. With the car, it's steering it, making sure we steer it in the right direction. Making sure we arrive next year on the right foot. Then Fred's job is to make sure that we are all in the same direction. "Of course, we're going to race hard. But fair and making sure that we get the maximum out of it." Hamilton backed Vasseur, saying "I still believe Fred is the right guy to lead us to the championship". Asked what he wants moving forward: "I think it's about communication. It's about understanding. "I don't really know yet. I've tried to think of what the meeting will be like, how it's going to go. I never ever know. "But what I will do is I'll make sure I'm always just authentically me. I won't back down from taking responsibility for any part that I play and any decisions that I make for the team. And just continue to push."