Ferrari’s rivals still have something we don’t, says Leclerc

Charles Leclerc says that Ferrari’s current problem is not finding the right set-up, it’s finding the speed and “raw performance” to trouble its Formula 1 rivals when it matters most.

The Scuderia’s SF-26 has frequently looked competitive during practice, only to lose ground when qualifying arrives.

Leclerc believes the apparent Friday promise can be misleading, pointing to a crucial advantage enjoyed by rival manufacturers when they turn up the performance for the fight for grid positions.

“I’m not sure we are particularly good on Fridays,” he admitted.

“I mean we are, but I believe it comes more from the engine modes that others are running, and once we come to qualifying, they just have something that we don’t.”

No amount of set-up tinkering can fix the deficit

Leclerc insists Ferrari’s preparation is actually one of its strengths. Effective simulator work at Maranello and strong correlation between its virtual models and the real car allow the team to arrive at circuits with a well-balanced package, rather than spending precious practice time searching for a workable direction.

“One of our strengths as a team is straight from the get-go having a car with a good balance,” he said. “I think our car is quite peaky, but I think we do a very good preparation before the weekend on the simulator.

“The correlation has been quite strong recently, which helps us to do the work on the simulator back at home, and then arrive at the track and have a strong car straight away and a car I feel comfortable with.”

The implication is uncomfortable for Ferrari: if the foundations are already sound, simply making the car more sensitive to set-up changes will not magically unlock the missing pace.

“It’s not that if we design a very peaky car, then we can extract more out of it,” he said. “The raw potential of the car is not at the level of our main competitors, but I don’t think making it more peaky will be able to extract anything more.

“I think it’s just the raw performance of the car where we are a bit down at the moment.”

Austin upgrade carries Ferrari’s hopes

Ferrari’s straight-line speed has been a persistent weakness, with its smaller turbo chosen to improve performance at lower speeds ultimately failing to deliver a decisive advantage across the season.

This weekend at the Circuit of the Americas, the Italian outfit will roll out its most significant upgrade of the season that should include a new floor, sidepods and bodywork.

The changes will hopefully offer Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton a potentially important opportunity to recover ground.

Ferrari’s last victory came at Silverstone, where Leclerc triumphed, although the team has since outscored Mercedes in Bahrain and Singapore, where the Monegasque finished second behind Max Verstappen.

• Read also: Ferrari joins Austin’s special livery frenzy

The Scuderia remains second in the constructors’ standings with 444 points, 134 behind Mercedes. Leclerc is fifth in the drivers’ championship on 215 points, while Hamilton sits third on 229.

Ferrari has demonstrated that it can compete. What Leclerc wants now is the underlying performance to make that competitiveness count when qualifying exposes the car’s limitations.

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