Lewis Hamilton responded to criticism regarding his working relationship with Ferrari race engineer Riccardo Adami following a challenging weekend at the Monaco Grand Prix. The incident drew increased scrutiny after Hamilton received a three-place grid penalty due to incorrect information from Adami, which affected his race strategy and performance.
Hamilton finished fifth in Monaco, and during the cooldown lap, he expressed gratitude to the team for repairing his car ahead of qualifying after crashing in the final practice session. However, he later questioned on team radio,
“are you upset with me or something?”
but did not get a reply, adding to speculation about tensions within the team.
Technical Glitches and Radio Silence at Monaco
The post-race silence over the radio was attributed by Hamilton to technical issues affecting communications during the race. He commented,
“It was literally just, there were areas that we just had radio problems through the race.”
Despite these difficulties, Hamilton emphasized that he missed vital information throughout the event, saying,
I didn’t get all the information that I wanted, and that was it.
Hamilton Rejects Speculation on Tensions with Adami
Following earlier media focus on their radio exchanges during the Australian Grand Prix, Hamilton dismissed rumors about friction with Adami as exaggerated. He described their relationship as strong despite occasional disagreements, emphasizing their shared goals and teamwork at Ferrari. Hamilton stated,
There’s a lot of speculation. I mean most of it’s b******t. Ultimately, we have a great relationship,
and added,
“He’s been amazing to work with. He’s a great guy. We’re working so hard. We both are and we don’t always get it right every weekend.”
He further explained the normal nature of disagreements, noting,
“We have disagreements, like everyone does in relationships, but we work through them. We are both in it together, both want to win a championship together and towards lifting the team up.”
Reflecting on the external noise about their relationship, Hamilton stated,
So it’s just all noise, and we don’t really pay any attention to it. It can continue if you want, but it doesn’t make any difference to the job that we’re trying to do.
Prospects for the 2025 Championship and Current Season Challenges
Currently, Hamilton trails championship leader Oscar Piastri by 98 points after eight rounds, and has yet to secure a podium finish as a Ferrari driver. Despite the gap, he remains cautiously optimistic about his championship chances, emphasizing work on next year’s car. Hamilton remarked,
I think we are working on next year’s car, whether or not we are 100 per cent, I can’t comment on,
and added,
Next year is the championship that’s currently open. This one will be a lot harder to win but it’s not closed and it will be interesting to see what happens this weekend.
Hamilton is hopeful that upcoming regulatory changes, particularly regarding flexible wings, might alter team dynamics and assist Ferrari’s performance. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff suggested Ferrari could gain the most from these changes, to which Hamilton responded,
I don’t know what gives him that impression but I hope he’s right
. Reflecting on recent progress, Hamilton said,
“We have taken a bit of a step. I can’t say just from one race that we’ve fixed anything, but I’m hoping this weekend we can continue with the progress we have made in the last two races, particularly the last race with qualifying.”
He added,
If we can produce that again this weekend, it would be great.
Sky Sports F1 Coverage of the Spanish Grand Prix
The European triple-header in Formula 1 continues with the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona, featuring extensive live coverage beginning Friday on Sky Sports F1. The weekend schedule includes:
Friday May 30
8:50 am: F3 Practice
10:00 am: F2 Practice
12:00 pm: Spanish GP Practice One (starts at 12:30 pm)
1:55 pm: F3 Qualifying
2:50 pm: F2 Qualifying
3:35 pm: Spanish GP Practice Two (starts at 4:00 pm)
5:15 pm: The F1 Show
Saturday May 31
9:00 am: F3 Sprint
11:15 am: Spanish GP Practice Three (starts at 11:30 am)
1:10 pm: F2 Sprint
2:10 pm: Spanish GP Qualifying build-up
3:00 pm: Spanish GP Qualifying
Sunday June 1
7:25 am: F3 Feature Race
8:55 am: F2 Feature Race
12:30 pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Spanish GP build-up
2:00 pm: Spanish Grand Prix race
4:00 pm: Chequered Flag: Spanish GP reaction
All sessions will also be available live on Sky Sports Main Event, with streaming accessible through NOW, offering flexible options with no contracts.
