Charles Leclerc was left fuming after Lewis Hamilton’s race-ending crash at the Dutch Grand Prix triggered a safety car that cost the Ferrari driver track position.
In treacherous conditions at Zandvoort, Hamilton lost control of his Ferrari on the Turn 3 banking and clipped the wall with his right front tyre. The impact caused terminal damage, forcing the seven-time world champion to retire from a Grand Prix for the first time in 2025.
Just a lap earlier, Leclerc had pitted from fifth place for fresh hard tyres as rain began to intensify. But Hamilton’s crash brought out the safety car, allowing rivals ahead to pit and lose significantly less time. The timing of the incident proved costly for Leclerc, who dropped a position to Mercedes’ George Russell.
Over team radio, the Monegasque vented his frustration:
“No! F*ing hell. Oh my god. We are so unlucky, it is unbelievable.”**
It remains unclear whether Leclerc knew at the time that the safety car had been triggered by his own team-mate.
On the restart, however, Leclerc wasted no time reclaiming the lost ground. He launched an aggressive move on Russell into the Sector 3 chicane, banging wheels with the Mercedes before completing the overtake. The incident was later placed under investigation by the stewards.
For Hamilton, the nightmare didn’t end with his retirement. The Briton was already under scrutiny before lights out, with FIA stewards investigating a potential yellow flag infringement during his reconnaissance lap to the grid. Reports suggest he failed to slow near the pit entry, although the governing body has yet to issue an official ruling.
Hamilton’s crash compounds what has been an eventful season in his first year with Ferrari. Although he was disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix earlier this year—alongside Leclerc—for excessive plank wear, Sunday marked the first time he failed to finish a race outright.
Leclerc, left as Ferrari’s sole runner in Zandvoort, now faces a stewards’ verdict of his own following his clash with Russell, while Hamilton awaits the outcome of the FIA’s pre-race investigation.
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