Photo: © IMAGO

Lewis Hamilton has been warned that his team radio outburst at the Miami Grand Prix could lead to further strain in his relationship with Ferrari.

The seven-time world champion’s frustration with his team came to the fore at the Miami GP, when he delivered a series of sarcastic team radio messages to his race engineer.

When Hamilton expressed his displeasure at how long it took for the team to orchestrate team orders between himself and Leclerc, the champion snapped back: “have a tea break while you’re at it.”

Later on in the race, the team decided to swap the two cars back, with Leclerc finishing seventh and Hamilton one place further back in eighth. When reminded by engineer Riccardo Adami the gap to Carlos Sainz behind, Hamilton cheekily responded: “Do you want me to let him through as well?”

However, his actions in Miami have prompted criticism from former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, who suggested he should have behaved differently in Miami.

“Hamilton, that was somehow wrong,” Schumacher said on Sky Germany podcast ‘Backstage Pit Lane’.

“If you really want to overtake, that’s one thing; he was faster at the time, too. But then I’ll give it back without a fight, and afterwards, I won’t pretend I meant it sarcastically. I’ll just say I’m sorry. That shouldn’t really happen with his experience and age.”

Hamilton left frustrated with Ferrari

The former F1 driver later warned Hamilton about the potential strain his frustration could put on his relationship with the team.

“[Hamilton] could have acted a bit more cleverly. I think that would have suited him better,” Schumacher added.

“The people at Ferrari have gotten to know Hamilton a little bit internally. Such actions naturally put a strain on the relationship. That will stick, and he has to realise that.

“It will definitely be discussed – especially internally – about how to deal with it in the future. His strong words on the radio, the demands, don’t really match his performance at the moment, and it doesn’t matter how many times he’s been world champion.

“He was closer to Leclerc now, but I think he should also keep his footing a bit lower at the moment.”