"I was P2, then somehow ended up P3": Lewis Hamilton takes a subtle dig at teammate Charles Leclerc's first lap antics in the Mexican GP

Lewis Hamilton took a subtle dig at Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc's controversial lap one incident at the 2025 Mexico Grand Prix. Leclerc started the race on the front row in P2, while Hamilton was behind him in P3 - their best joint qualifying effort of the season.

The seven-time F1 champion got off to a better start in the race and gained on his teammate on the long lead-up to the right-hander Turn 1. Pole-sitter Lando Norris took the extreme inside line, while Lewis Hamilton was to his left with Charles Leclerc beside him on the outside. Max Verstappen squeezed into the extreme outside line with the drivers going four-wide into Turn 1.

The Ferraris made momentary contact while turning in. Norris remained P1 going into Turn 2, with Hamilton behind him. However, Leclerc went slightly wide into the corner, and instead of returning to the track, which was feasible, the Monegasque cut the grass and came out in the lead in Turn 3.

While Leclerc gave back P1 to Lando Norris in Turn 4, he remained ahead of his Ferrari teammate, who found himself in P4 after Verstappen also overtook him off track. However, the Red Bull driver gave back P3 to the seven-time F1 champion in Turn 5.

As for the Leclerc-Hamilton moment, neither did the Ferrari pit wall intervene to ask the drivers to swap positions, nor did the FIA penalize Leclerc. While speaking about the race start and the incident post-race, Lewis Hamilton said:

"I had a good start. I was P2 by Turn 2 and then somehow ended up P3 and then... yeah, that was pretty much it."

On lap 6, Hamilton had a similar moment, where he cut a corner and overtook Verstappen off the track in Turn 4. The stewards gave him a 10-second stop-and-go time penalty for leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage.

It was because of that penalty that Charles Leclerc's (Turn 1, lap 1) and Max Verstappen's (Turn 3, lap 6) corner-cutting incidents grabbed more negative limelight. The stewards took no action over those two moments.

Lewis Hamilton feels let down by the FIA for "double standards" in Mexico GP decisions

Lewis Hamilton at the F1 Mexico Grand Prix of Mexico - Source: Getty

Lewis Hamilton was upset with the Mexico GP stewards for handing him a 10-second penalty for cutting the corner in Turn 4 on lap 6 and gaining a position on Max Verstappen. He reasoned that the part of the track had low grip, which caused him to lock up and go off the track.

While Ferrari had the right to ask for a review of the incident, what irked Hamilton was that the stewards didn't penalize his rivals for similar corner-cutting. In a post-race interview, he expressed discontent with the FIA, saying:

"Ultimately, I feel very let down by the governing body. It’s double standards as you can tell, and it is what it is."

Lewis Hamilton's best qualifying position of the season turned to dust, as he eventually finished the race in P8. Meanwhile, teammate Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen finished on the podium behind race winner Lando Norris.

Edited by Yash Kotak