Whatever the rights and wrongs, whoever was to blame, the fact is that on Sunday the unforgivable occurred, when Sebastian Vettel and teammate Charles Leclerc clashed and were both eliminated from the Brazilian Grand Prix on the spot, resulting in the Maranello outfit's first double DNF of the season.

In the eyes of many it had been a long time coming, it was only a matter of time before what had been simmering away for much of the year finally boiled over.

While Vettel seeks to close the 19 point gap to his teammate, in a bid to reclaim his position as 'top dog' at Maranello, Leclerc is equally determined to establish himself as the new leader. It literally was an accident waiting to happen.

Formula One managing director, Ross Brawn, who has had experience of managing difficult drivers over the year, advises Mattia Binotto that he must get a grip on the situation before it spirals out of control.

"It's never nice when team-mates knock one another out of a race," said the Briton, "even more so when it's not even a particularly important result that goes begging, as in this case, third place in Brazil was the most they could aspire to.

"After tensions flared in the races following the summer break, everything seemed to have calmed down in the Ferrari dressing room," he continued. "But now, Mattia Binotto faces the tough task of getting things back on track and indeed he said just that in his interviews after the race.

"He had to get stuck in and tell the drivers to face up to their responsibilities, which in Maranello always means putting the interests of the team ahead of those of the individual, which was not the case in Sunday's race.

"I wouldn't want to venture an opinion on who was most at fault for the collision, but in the cold light of day, maybe it would be good if one of them will follow Hamilton's example and immediately admit culpability, as the champion did regarding his clash with Albon.

"If Ferrari really wants to put an end to Mercedes' dominance, not only does it need to provide its drivers with a more competitive car next year, it must also ensure that incidents like this one are not repeated. Formula 1 is a team sport, especially so in Maranello."

Both drivers are to meet with Binotto this week at Maranello, having been warned not to discuss the incident with the media in Brazil.

As Brawn says, no matter how competitive next year's car, unless the antics of the drivers are under control Ferrari will continue to lose out to Mercedes and Red Bull.