Hamilton, Leclerc and Vasseur prior to the Italian Grand Prix

Fred Vasseur, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc

Ferrari boss believes Hamilton showed superior speed to Leclerc in Italian GP

10:32, 09 Sep

byTobia Elia

Frédéric Vasseur commented on Lewis Hamilton’s result at the Italian Grand Prix and how the warmth and support of the Monza fans gave him a boost throughout the whole week.

The Monza weekend, his first as a Ferrari driver, brought back a combative and reinvigorated Hamilton to Formula 1 after a string of disappointing results in the races before the summer break.

Throughout the weekend, Hamilton thanked the fans for the warmth they showed him, which helped him get a little extra out on track.

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur

'The pace was better from the beginning'

When GPblog asked him how' important the support from the Tifosi was during the week leading up to and throughout the Monza weekend, Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur responded: ''I think this started in Zandvoort last week.''

''It's difficult to say because the outcome of the weekend was not positive for him but at the end of the day the pace was better from the beginning compared to Charles.''

''The mood was better, during the race he was fighting with Russell until lap 30. That means that he was back in a better position, and I think the energy that he received from the Tifosi on Wednesday and Thursday in Milan was something very special for him.''

He then added: ''I don't know if it was expected from him or I don't know what he was expecting from this, but it was something mega and I think this gave him an extra boost all over the weekend.''

The seven-time world champion’s race was affected by a five-place grid penalty on Sunday, forcing him to start from tenth instead of the fifth place he had earned in qualifying.

Despite this, the Brit still put in a positive performance, overtaking many cars ahead of him and finishing the race in sixth, just behind George Russell, who kept close for much of the race.

''For sure we had to serve the penalty and we knew from the beginning of the weekend that with plus five it's not an easy one, but he came back behind Russell and the pace was there from the first lap of FP1 to the last lap of the race,'' Vasseur finally added.