Hamilton says Ferrari’s Bahrain tyre call was collective

Lewis Hamilton said Ferrari’s decision to start on slick tyres at the wet Bahrain Grand Prix was a collective mistake and argued that his team receives more criticism than McLaren for similar strategy calls. He said the tyre choice involved him and senior team members, rather than the strategy department alone. Ferrari started Hamilton and teammate Charles Leclerc on slick tyres as the team expected the track to dry. The conditions remained slippery, and both drivers lost positions early. Hamilton, who started second, fell near the back of the field before recovering to finish third. Leclerc made an early pit stop. Hamilton said he had urged the team to use intermediate tyres but accepted the differing views of colleagues involved in the decision. He named team principal Fred Vasseur, head of track engineering Matteo Togninalli, his race engineer and himself as participants in the discussions. Hamilton said such choices are made collectively and that strategy staff should not bear sole responsibility for the outcome. He also said McLaren made the same decision to start on slick tyres but did not face comparable scrutiny.