14/05/2025 15:00
Charles Leclerc has revealed that "extreme" changes have been made
by Ferrari this season, in terms of the direction of the SF-25's
setup. It has been a disastrous season so far for the Scuderia,
who sit fourth in the F1 constructors' title and a staggering 152
points behind McLaren after just six races. Ferrari had hoped for
a strong start to the campaign, although has faced immediate issues
with its package. Consistency has been a pressing problem for both
Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, who have rarely challenged the podium
places. Hamilton is yet to claim a grand prix podium this year,
although does have a sprint rostrum and a sprint win to his name in
2025. As for Leclerc, he picked up a top three finish in Saudi
Arabia. The SF-25 has suffered from poor balance, tyre degradation
issues and just a general lack of pace, which left both Ferrari
drivers fighting for seventh in Miami. It is a significant week
for the Maranello-based outfit ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand
Prix – its home race – with a big performance not only being
needed, but expected from the Tifosi. Ferrari is throwing
everything at fixing the car and understanding why its performance
is so weak, which has seen Leclerc even change his driving style
alongside major setup adjustments. "It's always very, very
difficult, I think, to compare drivers settings, because if you
don't feel at ease, there's always something that you struggle with
more than the other driver, and that's why you cannot go as fast,"
Leclerc told select media in Miami, including RacingNews365 . "On
my side, this year, we've gone in quite extreme directions in terms
of setup in order to extract a bit more out of the car. "So I feel
like I'm changing quite a lot of my driving style in order to fit
the the new requirements from this car. However, there might be
things now that it's been seven years that I've been with Ferrari.
"So now there are most likely things that are also very natural to
me now after so many years with the team that I don't realise
enough. Even though I feel like I've been driving quite differently
this year, just because this car requires a different setup and a
different way of driving."
