Leclerc and Hamilton push back on Hadjar's claim that Verstappen would win by more in a Ferrari

Isack Hadjar's suggestion that Max Verstappen would have won the Singapore Grand Prix by a bigger margin in a Ferrari became one of the talking points of media day in Austin. Charles Leclerc dismissed the idea, Lewis Hamilton politely disagreed, and Verstappen himself showed little interest in the debate ahead of the United States Grand Prix.

What Hadjar said

Verstappen won in Singapore on 11 October, beating Leclerc by 7.335 seconds, with Kimi Antonelli third. It was the Dutchman's first win at Marina Bay. Hadjar, Verstappen's team-mate at Red Bull, argued afterwards that Ferrari had the faster car there, according to PlanetF1. He pointed to Verstappen taking pole by just half a tenth and to Ferrari not having new soft tyres for the race, and contrasted Singapore with Malaysia, where he felt Red Bull had been dominant.

Leclerc: no way to know

Leclerc rejected the claim on Thursday. He called it "nonsense", per PlanetF1 and GPblog, and argued that Hadjar could not know how the Ferrari behaves. In his view, the field is so tightly packed that results depend more on extracting the most from the whole package than on clear differences between cars.

Hamilton credits Red Bull's engine

Hamilton was more measured. He praised Hadjar as a driver but disagreed with the conclusion, saying Red Bull had proved the opposite. The seven-time champion said Ferrari could match Red Bull through the corners but were three or four tenths slower on the straights, and that Red Bull have the strongest engine this year.

He also played down Ferrari's latest update. The team has brought a floor upgrade to Austin, which Hamilton said was worth less than a tenth of a second and would not close the gap. Leclerc said the package was smaller than rumoured.

Verstappen, according to The Race, brushed the whole discussion aside as stress over something that does not matter.

Hamilton owns his Singapore strategy call

Hamilton also addressed a different Singapore storyline. Late in that race he stayed out when Ferrari told him to pit, and his fading tyres dropped him from a podium position to sixth. He said he had not realised Leclerc was pitting ahead of him, made a split-second decision to stay out and knew it was wrong as he passed the pit entry. He defended questioning team instructions as part of his approach, while accepting it had not worked on that occasion.

Where the standings sit

The exchanges matter because the battle behind the Mercedes pair is tight. After Singapore, Hamilton is third on 229 points, Verstappen fourth on 221 and Leclerc fifth on 215. Antonelli leads on 340, with George Russell second on 238.

Key takeaways

• Hadjar said Ferrari had the faster car in Singapore and that Verstappen would have won by more in a Ferrari.
• Leclerc called the claim nonsense; Hamilton said Red Bull had the best engine and a three-to-four-tenth edge on the straights.
• Hamilton described Ferrari's Austin floor upgrade as worth under a tenth.
• Hamilton admitted ignoring a pit call in Singapore cost him a podium.

FAQ

Who won the 2026 Singapore Grand Prix? Max Verstappen won on 11 October, 7.335 seconds ahead of Charles Leclerc, with Kimi Antonelli third. It was his first Singapore victory.

What is Ferrari bringing to Austin? A floor update. Hamilton estimated it at under a tenth of a second and Leclerc said it was smaller than rumoured.

Where are Hamilton, Verstappen and Leclerc in the standings? After Singapore, Hamilton is third on 229 points, Verstappen fourth on 221 and Leclerc fifth on 215.

Sources: PlanetF1, GPblog, The Race, Malay Mail, RacingNews365