Hamilton and Leclerc share ‘kiss’ in thrilling Ferrari fight at Chinese Grand Prix
Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc battle
Lewis Hamilton shared a “kiss” with Charles Leclerc in what was a thrilling battle between the Ferrari teammates at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Hamilton said that it was “tough racing”, and that is exactly what racing is about. It was a battle which Leclerc also enjoyed, even if Hamilton did eventually come out the victor to claim his first Ferrari podium.
Lewis Hamilton beats Charles Leclerc after ‘kiss’ in Chinese Grand Prix Ferrari battle
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After a positive race trim debut for the F1 2026 regulations in Melbourne, there was more enthralling wheel-to-wheel action in Shanghai.
Most notably at the front, as Kimi Antonelli, George Russell, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc jousted for the lead.
Antonelli ultimately pulled away, as Hamilton, Leclerc and Russell engaged in a ding-dong scrap for the final spots on the podium. Russell prevailed to maintain Mercedes’ 100 per cent record of one-two results in 2026. Hamilton, meanwhile, traded places with Leclerc relentlessly, but it was Hamilton who won out in the end.
With that, Hamilton, at last, secured his first podium as a Ferrari driver, and a record-extending 203rd of his career.
“Firstly, I have to say a huge congratulations to Kimi,” said Hamilton after the race, as he spoke to David Coulthard alongside Russell and the first-time grand prix winner, Kimi Antonelli.
“I’m so so happy for you buddy, and I’m so honoured to be able to share this moment with him.
“He took my seat, obviously, in this great team. So big congratulations to Mercedes. They’re really pulling ahead at the moment. We’ve got a lot of work to do to try and keep up.
“But I had so much fun. We had a great start. Wasn’t able to keep these guys behind, but to stay in the fight, it was one of the most enjoyable races that I’ve had in a long, long time, if ever.
“The fact that the cars are the way they are this year, and that battle with Charles at the end was awesome. Great wheel to wheel battle. Very fair and just what we want. We’ve got to keep pushing.”
Coulthard told Hamilton that there were moments where “we were standing back in commentary box” in disbelief over how the Ferrari drivers were not touching.
“I think there was one moment we did touch,” Hamilton confirmed in response, “but it was subtle, just a kiss. So it’s okay.
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“But that’s what it’s about. It’s about tough racing.
“And I’ve got to say a huge thank you to everyone at Ferrari, everyone back at Maranello, for getting us into this position. I know it’s not exactly where we want to be. We want to be up front, where these guys [Mercedes] are, but we’ve got a great platform to work off, and we’ve just got to literally full gas.”
Formula 1 heads into its first weekend break of the season from here, ahead of a return to action at Suzuka.
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