Lewis Hamilton was publicly called out after the Brazilian Grand Prix disaster.

Lewis Hamilton was publicly called out by Ferrari’s president (Image: Getty)

Multi-time F1 Grand Prix winner Johnny Herbert has rebuffed Ferrari president John Elkann’s claim that his engineers are ‘winning the championship’, laying the blame at the feet of those in the Maranello factory, rather than the under-fire drivers.

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were publicly called out by Elkann at the end of a weekend of contrasting fortunes for the Italian auto manufacturer. Ferrari won both World Endurance Championship titles in Bahrain, but suffered a disastrous double-DNF at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

“We won the WEC title – when Ferrari is united, you get results,” the Ferrari president said in Bahrain. “[But] Brazil was a huge disappointment. If we look at the Formula 1 championship, we can say that our mechanics are winning the championship with their performance and everything they’ve done on the pit stops.

“If we look at our engineers, there’s no doubt that the car has improved. If we look at the rest, it’s not up to par. And we certainly have drivers for whom it’s important that they focus on driving and talk less.”

Elkann’s concern is understandable. With only three races in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi remaining in the 2025 season, Ferrari have slumped to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship standings. They now trail Mercedes by 26 points, and Red Bull by four.

However, according to Herbert, it is not Hamilton or Leclerc who are to blame for the team’s current predicament, but the Ferrari engineers, who have been unable to produce a car capable of fighting McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull for race victories.

Johnny Herbert does not believe that Hamilton and Leclerc are to blame (Image: Getty)

“I think it’s very harsh,” former Benetton racer Herbert told the Stay on Track podcast. “And with the experience that mainly Lewis [has], because Lewis is the one who’s won the world championships with Mercedes and with McLaren.

“He knows how those teams work, and they work in a very, very methodical way. I think it’s fair what they [Hamilton and Leclerc] are saying. They’re critical of the team and the performance of the car. And that’s their job.

“I think for John to come out there and try and almost tell the drivers to shut up is probably not a beneficial thing, because I think it only makes it a little bit more difficult for the drivers in that environment.

“The problem is back at the factory, unfortunately, where the engineers haven’t been able to produce the goods. If the drivers had the car they need, they wouldn’t be commenting in that way.”