Charles Leclerc has to question his Ferrari loyalty if F1 slump in form continues
FINAL CORNER, CHEQUERED FLAG: Ferrari risk losing their best asset if they don't get their act together
Charles Leclerc has seen off Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz at Ferrari and is currently on his way to delivering the same fate to Lewis Hamilton.
The Monegasque has gone toe-to-toe with Max Verstappen and even come out on top on some occasions, he’s one of the fastest drivers over a single lap on the entire grid and he’s proven he can win races from the front or from the chasing pack. The 27-year-old has become ultra consistent, significantly reducing the errors from his game and is one of the fiercest competitors in F1.
But he is also sat fifth in the drivers’ standings currently and almost 100 points behind leader Oscar Piastri. This is his seventh season with Ferrari and he has no championship to show for it. While he’s made it clear that his desire is to succeed in red, and his loyalty to the team has been admirable, this frustrating start to the campaign must be eating at him.
Going into 2025, many expected the Italian outfit to be at the front of the pack, or at least competing for regular wins and podiums. The addition of Hamilton added to this excitement, with the Scuderia chasing a first title since 2008 and a first drivers’ championship since 2007.
But a disastrous start, reaching a low point that saw both drivers disqualified from the Chinese grand prix for separate reasons, has left the team adrift in both championships. These kinds of underwhelming results typically only end one way for Ferrari, and this is with heads rolling and people losing their jobs, so team principal Frédéric Vasseur will be feeling the heat if things don’t improve quickly.
The Emilia Romagna grand prix this weekend is not only the start of the European swing of the season, but it is also the first of two home races for the Italian team, so another poor showing here will certainly not go down well in front of the Tifosi. The last time Ferrari raced in front of their home crowd Leclerc took home the victory at Monza, the start of a run of form that brought the team back into contention in the constructors’ championship.
But Ferrari are now coming into the race after a deeply disappointing showing at Miami in which they were way off the pace of the McLarens, and even slower than Williams, while communication issues highlighted how unprepared this team is to compete for major honours. The ship has to be righted immediately, but quick fixes in F1 don’t come easy.
It’s unlikely the pecking order will change at Imola too much despite it being the first European race of the season — and thus where most teams would traditionally bring their first upgrade packages of the year. Instead, the Spanish grand prix in a couple of weeks is likely where Ferrari will begin their comeback efforts, when the technical directive (TD) impacting front flexi-wings will come into place.
However, it’s very difficult to see how Leclerc mounts a title challenge this year, with the Scuderia once again just not capable of building a car capable of fighting for both championships. In the last 15 years, they have arguably only once pulled this off, 2018, and the backwards step they have taken this year should be sounding off major alarm bells for the young star.
Leclerc is still only 27, and could be racing in F1 another 13 years if his teammate is anything to go by, but he will surely harbour ambitions of success that arrive well before that time comes. Verstappen was his peer at a very young age, the two racing each other at karts well before they even stepped foot in an F1 car, but the Dutchman has four titles to his name already. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, both younger and not in the sport as long, have a great chance of glory this year, and one will surely triumph in the McLaren.
The 2026 regulation changes will likely change the pecking order, but at this point do you trust Ferrari to nail it? Leclerc has a long-term contract with the team that he signed last year, so he will be in red again next season. If a title-challenging car isn’t produced in 12 months’ time, then it might be time for him to finally consider the path forward for the rest of his career.
Leclerc is a championship-calibre driver being let down by poor machinery and insufficient management behind the scenes. Nobody should write Ferrari off just yet, but if things don’t improve then their impeccable driver line-up surely won’t last.
Quote of the week
“For now, I think clearly the battle [for the championship] is Lando and I. I think we want the best person to win every weekend, and at the moment, that's what's happening,” said Piastri ahead of Imola.
The Australian goes into the weekend top of the championship, 16 points ahead of Norris, and on a three-race winning streak!
Prediction corner
Pirelli are trying out some experiments with their tyres at this point in the season, which will see the new C6 used at Imola in a bid to add some strategic variety. However, I predict it’ll be a typical one-stopper on Sunday, provided it stays dry.
Race Rating - Miami
The sprint was quite entertaining due to the mixed conditions, but the rain never arrived on Sunday, which led to an anticlimactic second half after a really strong opening stint. 2/5.
Driver Power Rankings - Miami
Piastri took advantage at turn one and controlled the race once he executed a nice pass on Verstappen in the early stages, giving him a commanding lead in the championship. Alex Albon was really solid all throughout the weekend, and brought him a big points haul for Williams, while Norris didn’t put much of a foot wrong either, and was unlucky not to be at the front of the field.
Verstappen didn’t have the cleanest race, and the timing of the VSC cost him a podium, but his pole lap was sensational. Leclerc aquaplaned into the wall prior to the sprint, not much he could do about that, but he made up for it in the race by maximising the package.
Russell was slower than Antonelli for much of the weekend, and really only finished ahead in both the sprint and main race due to good fortune. Hamilton was definitely closer to Leclerc in Miami, and good strategy on Saturday earned him good points, but the main race gains a lot more weight to me here than the sprint.
Ocon and Bortoleto were out of the points but out-matched their teammates quite well, and showed good pace in under-powered machinery.
Here is my ranking for the race: 1. Oscar Piastri. 2. Alex Albon. 3. Lando Norris. 4. Max Verstappen. 5. Charles Leclerc. 6. Andrea Kimi Antonelli. 7. Lewis Hamilton. 8. Esteban Ocon. 9. Gabriel Bortoleto. 10. George Russell.
And here is how that result is reflected in the DPR Championship:
