Charles Leclerc finished the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix qualifying in fourth place, three and a half tenths behind Max Verstappen, who claimed pole position.
Compared to the early races of the season, Charles Leclerc’s result seems to show tangible improvements from the Scuderia Ferrari team, but at the end of the Jeddah qualifying session, the Monegasque’s mood was very low.
The fourth place seems to have no impact on him. What matters to him is one thing: understanding that the SF-25 lacks potential, at least in the configuration it has at this early stage of the season.
These are very heavy words from Charles, as they contradict those often expressed by team principal Frédéric Vasseur. The French manager frequently speaks about the potential that has yet to be unlocked from the car, whereas Leclerc has said something quite different.
“The disappointment is high because it’s a track where we had high expectations. Today is confirmation that we lack potential overall,” said the former Alfa Romeo Sauber driver decisively.
If the SF-25 doesn’t provide what Charles Leclerc expects, he knows that he has found a setup that allows him to extract the most from the car. This is certainly a plus, but it also has significant downsides.
The setup, in fact, makes the SF-25 more difficult to drive. Not surprisingly, Charles Leclerc mentioned that he risked hitting the wall multiple times during the decisive stages of today’s qualifying: “I’m happy on my side because, as I’ve already said, I’ve found a direction that allows me to perform when we’re in qualifying. I can extract the maximum from the car, even though what I’ve found makes it very difficult to drive. If you look at my lap, I think I almost hit the wall at least a couple of times.” – the Monegasque driver concluded.
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