Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has come under fire from former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher for his behaviour during and after the Miami Grand Prix.
Struggling to settle into Ferrari after his long tenure at Mercedes, Hamilton's radio communications last Sunday were notably sharp. He accused the pitwall of taking "a tea break" while deliberating whether to allow him to overtake Charles Leclerc and criticised his engineer Riccardo Adami for speaking to him in a braking zone.
When instructed to let Leclerc repass and informed that Carlos Sainz was now behind, the 40-year-old responded sarcastically: "Do you want me to let him (Sainz) pass too?"
Schumacher, brother of Ferrari's most successful driver Michael, expressed his disapproval. "Boo-hoo Hamilton, that was a bit much," he told Sky Deutschland.
"If you want to go past (Leclerc), that's one thing - he was faster at the time. But then to not give it back without a fight?
"And then afterwards, I wouldn't act as if I meant it sarcastically. Instead, he should have just said sorry. With his experience and his age, that really shouldn't have happened. He could have acted a bit more cleverly. That would have suited him better," Schumacher asserted.
Following the pre-season hype surrounding Hamilton's move to Ferrari, Schumacher believes the Briton is mishandling his current difficulties. "The people at Ferrari have gotten to know Hamilton internally a bit now," he said.
"And such behaviour naturally strains the relationship. This will stick, and he has to recognise that himself. His strong words on the radio, his demands, they don't really match his performance at the moment. I don't care how many times he's been world champion. He was closer to Leclerc in Miami, but I think he should still keep his approach a bit calmer at the moment."
Charles Leclerc also voiced frustration with the Miami incidents and Ferrari's overall lack of pace but adopted a more measured tone on the radio and with the media. "Leclerc was very frustrated in Miami too," Schumacher noted.
"I expect the pressure to be very high at Imola - in Italy. Ferrari is also going there with an update, and it has to work. Team boss Fred Vasseur is already under a lot of pressure."
