F1 Today: Charles Leclerc becomes a father, Lewis Hamilton makes FIA demand
Photo: Race Pictures
Henry Eccles is a freelance Formula 1 journalist for GPblog, covering breaking news, live race blogs, and features across the F1 calendar. Since joining in 2026, he has produced high-volume reporting on the sport’s biggest stories, alongside feature pieces including analysis and historical content.
From Charles Leclerc and Alexandra Saint Mleux announcing the birth of their first child, to Lewis Hamilton's demands to the FIA following a chat with Max Verstappen, here are the main stories from today, Wednesday, November 4.
Ferrari confirms Leclerc to travel to Brazil later following birth of first child
On Wednesday afternoon, Charles Leclerc, together with his wife Alexandra, announced the birth of their baby daughter, who they have named Bianca.
Wednesday's announcement means Leclerc has joined Sergio Perez, Nico Hulkenberg, Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso on the list of fathers currently on the Formula 1 grid.
As for how this will impact Leclerc's participation at the Sao Paulo GP this weekend, GPblog reported the Monegasque driver is currently with his family in Monaco and will therefore miss Thursday’s media commitments in Brazil, with the FIA undoubtedly granting him permission to do so.
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Leclerc will also have extra time to travel to Sao Paulo having also been confirmed not to be taking part in Friday's first Free Practice session. Ferrari reserve driver Dino Beganovic will take the Monegasque driver's place, fulfilling the Scuderia's obligation to field a rookie in a Free Practice session four times during the season.
F2 championship leader Rafael Camara was initially expected to step into the SF-26 on Friday. However, the Brazilian was unexpectedly appointed by Haas as the replacement for Esteban Ocon.
Lewis Hamilton makes FIA demand after Max Verstappen discussion in Mexico
Photo: Race Pictures
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Meanwhile, Leclerc's Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton has called on the FIA to address F1's "silly" clipping after failing to overtake Max Verstappen for the win during the final stages of the Mexico City GP. After speaking to Verstappen about the 2026 engine phenomenon, Hamilton said the new power units have the "worst engine profile setting" ever in the sport's history.
Focusing on the clipping during the post-race press conference -when the car drops from top speed towards the end of the straight as it harvests electrical energy - Hamilton said:"We had let Max past and the race was done from there. You can’t overtake here.
“I think it’s something the FIA need to do and it’s just quite bad. I’m sure these guys [Verstappen and Antonelli] would agree. We have this clip at the end of the straight where you can’t go past a certain speed, so everyone just follows."
"You should be able to go past that to have a chance to overtake. The engine can go faster. It’s just they have these silly clips. It’s the worst engine profile setting that I think they’ve probably ever had in this sport and it doesn’t provide great racing, so today you probably didn’t see much overtaking, unfortunately, because of that."
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