Ferrari Off-Pace: Leclerc Eyes Recovery After Tough Quali

Leclerc Stays Hopeful as Ferrari Struggles in Australia

Ferrari’s qualifying woes in Melbourne shocked many, but Charles Leclerc remains optimistic, believing the SF-25 still holds untapped potential.

Ferrari entered the Australian Grand Prix weekend with high hopes, showing strong pace in practice. Charles Leclerc even topped the second free practice session, raising expectations that the team could challenge for pole position. However, when it mattered most in qualifying, Ferrari fell short.

Leclerc ended up seventh on the grid, just ahead of his new teammate, Lewis Hamilton, in eighth. Initially competitive in Q3—only a tenth behind Max Verstappen after his first run—Leclerc failed to improve on his final lap. In the end, he was over six-tenths off Lando Norris’ pole time, a drop-off that surprised the team.

Struggling to Keep Up

Leclerc admitted that Ferrari seemed to lose pace as the sessions progressed.

“As we pushed the car harder, we started noticing more inconsistencies, which is frustrating,” he explained.
“We lost pace throughout qualifying—Q1 was strong, Q2 slightly less so, and in Q3, we had to push aggressively to extract the best lap possible. But for some reason, we didn’t keep up with the track evolution, and that’s something we need to analyze.”

Ferrari had been particularly strong in the final sector during practice, but that advantage disappeared in qualifying. Leclerc suggested that tire overheating played a role in their struggles.

“I think the final sector is where tires overheat the most. Today, I struggled a lot more than yesterday, so we’ll have to look into that.”

Setup Changes and Missed Opportunities

Ferrari made setup adjustments before the final practice session to improve the car’s balance, but Leclerc admitted they may have had unintended consequences.

“We lost competitiveness compared to yesterday, and we know what we changed. Now, we need to analyze whether that affected our performance negatively.”

Despite the struggles, Leclerc dismissed concerns that the SF-25 has a narrower operating window than last year’s car.

“I wouldn’t jump to conclusions yet. Q3 was particularly tough, but before that, I hadn’t noticed any major issues. We’ll need more time to evaluate.”

Looking Ahead: Race Day and Season Expectations

Even with a disappointing qualifying result, Leclerc remains optimistic about Ferrari’s overall pace.

“I hope we’ll be closer to McLaren in the race. The gap in Q3 doesn’t fully reflect our real potential. We lost balance at the wrong moment, which made it difficult to deliver a perfect lap.”

The Monegasque driver emphasized that Ferrari is still in the early stages of a long season.

“This is just the beginning. We need to stay calm, maximize our points tomorrow, and keep working. I believe this car has huge potential—we just need to find the right setup window.”

While qualifying was a setback, Leclerc’s confidence suggests Ferrari hasn’t shown its full hand yet. The true test will come in race conditions.