Charles Leclerc couldn't hide his disappointment after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver believes Red Bull and McLaren have made a step forward that his team did not. The race at the Baku City Circuit turned into a nightmare for the Maranello squad, who had to watch their rivals pull away.
Leclerc started the race from second on the grid after narrowly missing pole. He was just 0.001s behind Oscar Piastri and 0.137s ahead of Isack Hadjar. But those hopes vanished as the lights went out. A poor start dropped him down the order, and by lap four he was already fifth. He eventually finished fourth, but only because of a late mistake by Piastri at Turn 1 and Kimi Antonelli's qualifying crash that forced him to fight through the pack.
"It was a bit of a boring race for us," Leclerc said. "Unfortunately, we had a bad start, which was probably the only thing we could have done much better today. After that, we just had no pace. Compared to the Red Bull, it was very difficult to defend because in the straight line we are too slow. We are just struggling with raw pace at the moment."
Red Bull and McLaren indeed brought substantial upgrade packages to Baku. Red Bull focused on the sidepods, floor, and diffuser, plus new mirrors and halo. McLaren didn't hold back either, revising their sidepods, floor, diffuser, engine cover, rear suspension, and rear wing. Meanwhile, Ferrari kept its car untouched. That decision seemed to backfire.
Leclerc acknowledged that the Baku track might not suit his car's characteristics, but he believes the main issue is the rivals' development steps. "McLaren and Red Bull did a step forward with the upgrades they are bringing," he said. "They have grown recently, they did a step forward that we didn't do. And we must react, because losing some pace now is going to be very difficult to take it back. So hopefully we can react very soon."
Ferrari is not sitting idle. Leclerc hinted that the team has "a few things coming", but he remains cautious. "Whether it's going to be enough to close the gap, not knowing what the others have in store as well is another matter," he added. Development is limited by the budget cap and aerodynamic testing restrictions, so every upgrade must count.
Leclerc's teammate, Lewis Hamilton, was reluctant to comment on Ferrari's lack of speed. When asked if the Scuderia now had the fourth-fastest car, the seven-time world champion replied: "What's the importance of that?" He also insisted he doesn't think about others. Hamilton's cold response might reflect the frustration inside the Ferrari garage.
With this result, Red Bull further asserted their dominance, while McLaren kept up the pressure. Ferrari must bounce back quickly if they don't want to fall further behind in the championship fight. The next race will test the team's ability to respond under pressure. Fans will surely hope Leclerc and Hamilton can put up a fierce fight for the rest of the season.
Baca Juga
Charles Leclerc sebut Red Bull dan McLaren unggul setelah GP Azerbaijan. Ferrari harus bereaksi jika tak ingin tertinggal jauh di klasemen F1.
Liam Lawson kecewa keputusan steward yang bebaskan Arvid Lindblad dari sanksi usai tabrakan di Baku. Insiden ini rusak balapan Lawson dan potensi poin Racing Bulls.
FIA menjelaskan alasan tidak mengerahkan safety car atau VSC setelah Valtteri Bottas kecelakaan di Azerbaijan GP. Race director nilai double yellow cukup aman.
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