Former F1 star Juan Pablo Montoya has backed Lewis Hamilton's claim that his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc races him more aggressively than he does other drivers.

Montoya's comments came in the aftermath of the Mexican Grand Prix, where Hamilton and Leclerc battled hard on the opening lap, and it ended up costing Ferrari dearly.

Leclerc was given a penalty after they both ran off track while fighting for the lead, and post-race, Hamilton stated his belief that their opening lap shenanigans handed Max Verstappen the victory.

Hamilton also called for 'serious talks' behind the scenes and got his wish ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix, but team principal Fred Vasseur has since insisted that nothing has changed in terms of their rules of engagement.

Montoya: Leclerc more aggressive with Hamilton

Ahead of the race in Sao Paulo, Hamilton insisted that Leclerc races him harder than he does other drivers at the front of the F1 field, and claimed that he has a history of doing so against his teammates.

"Yes," Hamilton replied when that question was put to him in Sao Paulo. "I see what you see. Singapore, he was fully [alongside Verstappen], wheel to wheel, fully on the inside for the lead at Turn 1 in Singapore, and I think it was definitely different.

"But, I mean, if you look at the teammates, it was the same with Sebastian [Vettel], it was the same with Carlos [Sainz]."

Now, seven-time grand prix winner Montoya has shared his verdict, and it turns out that he agrees with Hamilton.

"Leclerc races Lewis harder, more aggressively and more relentlessly than he does anyone else," Montoya said, via AS. "Everyone can see that, which is why he is receiving so much criticism for it. If he raced everyone with that same approach, nobody would say anything."

Montoya continued: "When he was racing Max, Charles never braked that late. Charles brakes late, but Charles doesn't go through the grass. But because it was Lewis, he went all-out, and that's when they lose their heads. They lose their judgment."

Montoya shares his own F1 experiences and says these things can happen when racing against your teammate.

"And I'm telling you, it happened to me with Ralf Schumacher once; it happened to Ralf with me more than once," Montoya added. "You want to beat your teammate at all costs because that's how you control the team's development, your relationship within the team and how you're viewed in the team's pecking order."