'Point fingers somewhere else!' - Hamilton backs Vasseur but calls for other Ferrari change

Lewis Hamilton says there are "changes that I would make" to how Ferrari's F1 operation is structured but backs "fantastic leader" Vasseur to stay in charge of team; watch Friday's practice sessions for the Bahrain GP in Malaysia at 5.30am and 9am, live on Sky Sports F1

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Lewis Hamilton has launched an impassioned defence of Frederic Vasseur as Ferrari's team principal and suggested he would like to instead see other structural changes at the team.

Hamilton was speaking two days after Ferrari took the unusual step of arranging a media briefing for journalists in which a spokesperson said the company's management retained "full confidence" in Vasseur's leadership in the wake of growing speculation around the Frenchman's position in the team principal role amid a run of five races without a podium.

Speaking ahead of this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, Hamilton welcomed Ferrari's public move to silence the recent noise around the team - external criticism and speculation which the Briton said was "trying to break our spirit" but "not succeeding".

"I think it's good that they did it," said Hamilton of Ferrari's support of Vasseur.

"Fred is the guy to lead us. He's doing a fantastic job. If you look at the history how many people they're swapping out that role and I feel like it's in a better place than it's been before but ultimately it's not a one-man situation.

"It's lots and lots of people coming together and if you want to point fingers, point it somewhere else.

"There's people above that are also are a part of it as well. It's a lot of people. I feel like if you take things away from this message, Fred is in his position, he's not going anywhere and I'm here to stay with him and I still believe fully in where we're going."

Former Renault and Sauber chief Vasseur is in his fourth season in charge of the Maranello F1 outfit since replacing Mattia Binotto in the role from 2023. The 58-year-old first worked with Hamilton in what is now F3 and F2 in 2005-2006 before reuniting when the seven-time world champion joined from Mercedes in a blockbuster transfer last year.

"Fred has been fantastic working with me and I think our relationship as a whole, even with the bosses, is in a much better place than it ever was," added Hamilton.

"Of course, people making comments have absolutely no clue what they are talking about ultimately because they are not inside the team.

"What's happening in the team or how it's structured, where the weaknesses are, obviously I am in the team and I know all those - I'm not going to speak on them, but I'm going to continue to try and work with those people that are in power to make the changes.

"Making changes is not a quick thing, people aren't always willing to do so very early on, but Fred has done a lot of changes I've asked for already and there are more for us to do."

Speaking to the written media, Hamilton added: "Fred is a fantastic leader. He really is the guy to take this team in the right direction. However, there is a structure that's there for some time. Whether or not that needs looking at moving forwards, there are also people above Fred, and it's not about one person.

"Fred has led the team, helped make changes in this past year. He's helped us get to the second Constructors' Championship. That's a huge step from last year. The deficit we have is simply just on engine, and that's something we're not we don't shy away from. We know that.

"Every weekend we carry a 0.4s deficit, if not sometimes 0.6s, just in straight-line power, and we're aware of it, and that's something we need to try to work on. They're working extremely hard to try and fix that for next year."

At Ferrari Vasseur is team principal and general manager of the F1 team and ultimately reports in to the heads of the whole company, which includes its road-car division, chief executive Benedetto Vigna and executive chairman John Elkann.

Asked about the comparison to his former team Mercedes, where Toto Wolff is the Brackley F1 outfit's team principal, chief executive and one-third co-owner with the German manufacturer and Ineos, Hamilton said: "There are changes that I would make but I'm not going to talk about what those are.

Friday October 2 5am: Bahrain GP Practice One (session starts at 5.30am)* 7.30am: Team Bosses' Press Conference 8.45am: Bahrain GP Practice Two (session starts at 9am)* 10.15am: The F1 Show*

Saturday October 3 5.15am: Bahrain GP Practice Three (session starts at 5.30am)* 8am: Bahrain GP Qualifying build-up* 9am: BAHRAIN GP QUALIFYING*

Sunday October 4 6.30am: Grand Prix Sunday: Bahrain GP build-up* 8am: THE BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX* 10am: Chequered Flag: Bahrain GP reaction*

Formula 1 heads to Malaysia for the first time since 2017 as it hosts the Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit - watch live coverage from Friday morning, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime