Charles Leclerc delivered a sobering assessment of Ferrari’s prospects for the Belgian Grand Prix, admitting the team is unlikely to challenge for a win on Sunday after a lackluster fourth-place finish in Saturday’s Sprint race at Spa-Francorchamps.
The Monegasque driver’s comments underscored a recurring theme for Ferrari this season: flashes of promise quickly overshadowed by a lack of outright pace against Formula 1’s frontrunners.
Despite a strong getaway and an aggressive move to take third place on the opening lap of the Sprint, Leclerc was quickly overhauled by McLaren’s Lando Norris and spent the remainder of the race slipping out of touch with the leading trio.
“There's some learning to take away from a race like this,” Leclerc told Sky Sports F1 after the Sprint.
“However, it doesn't feel like we’re very far off the maximum potential of the car. I don't feel like we’re out of place with the set-up or anything like that.
“I don't think there's anything in the car that makes us hope that we can fight with Red Bull or McLaren, unfortunately.”
A Familiar Slide Backward
Leclerc had started fourth but made a bold move on Norris up the Kemmel Straight, going around the outside into Les Combes to seize third. However, the Ferrari’s early pace proved illusory.
Norris soon reclaimed the position with ease on lap four, and Leclerc steadily fell behind the leaders—ultimately finishing more than 10 seconds adrift of race winner Max Verstappen.
©Ferrari
Ferrari had entered the Spa weekend buoyed by a series of major upgrades, including a revamped underfloor, new rear suspension geometry, and a low-drag rear wing tailored to Spa’s high-speed layout.
The changes had been rolled out gradually across several races, beginning in Austria. But while the team’s engineers remain hopeful, the results on track suggest those updates are not yet delivering a breakthrough.
For Leclerc, that painful truth was all too evident during Saturday’s Sprint: despite a clean run and no apparent setup issues, Ferrari simply lacked the firepower to stay in the fight.
Hamilton: "At least I didn't spin"
Lewis Hamilton, who endured his own challenges after a spin in Sprint Qualifying consigned him to 18th on the grid, managed to gain three positions in what was otherwise a largely static race.
While disappointed by the difficulty of making progress, the Mercedes driver also reflected on Ferrari’s recent trajectory – specifically referencing Leclerc’s own struggles.
©Ferrari
“Well, the positive is I didn't spin,” Hamilton said to Sky Sports F1. “And I did move forward, but it was a really tough race. We couldn't move forward in the DRS train which was unfortunate – but I’ve definitely learned a lot about the upgrades that we have.
“I was just reflecting, part of the upgrade Charles has had since Montreal – and you saw the crash that he had there was kind of similar to something that I had yesterday.”
Hamilton was referring to Leclerc’s high-speed crash during first practice in Montreal, where a rear-axle lock-up sent the Monegasque into the Turn 3 barriers, damaging his chassis.
While Ferrari had not declared any official upgrades that weekend, some suspect changes were made behind the scenes – possibly undetectable under F1’s upgrade reporting regulations.
No Silver Bullets Yet
Whatever the technical tweaks may be, Leclerc made clear on Saturday that Ferrari’s current package remains a step behind the likes of McLaren and Red Bull – especially over longer stints.
The team’s top brass will now face tough questions heading into Sunday’s Grand Prix. With Leclerc conceding that even a podium could be out of reach, Ferrari must cope with the gap to the front-runners, despite throwing significant development resources at the SF-25.
As Spa’s famously fickle weather looms as a potential wildcard, Leclerc and Ferrari fans alike can only hope for disruption up front. Otherwise, Sunday may bring another long afternoon of managing expectations – rather than fighting for glory.
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