Charles Leclerc reflects on “unexpected podium” in Jeddah: “I thought I’d mainly have to defend”. Charles Leclerc secures Ferrari’s first podium of the F1 season in Jeddah.

Fifth time’s the charm. Ferrari takes home its first podium of the Formula 1 season in Jeddah, host of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, thanks to an outstanding performance by Charles Leclerc.

The Monegasque driver was superb in managing the Medium tyres during the first stint and then shifted gears on the Hards, overtaking Russell and ultimately defending from a charging Lando Norris.

Only the lapped traffic caused him real concern in the final laps of the 50-lap race. Otherwise, Leclerc was a master at managing the Mediums when it mattered most and then pushing hard before the pit stop. That may have been the key moment of his race, allowing him to rejoin the track close enough to Russell to land the decisive move.

Seeing a Ferrari so strong in race pace only makes the lack of single-lap performance more regrettable. But Leclerc knows that, at least for now, this is the situation, and all he can do is wait for major updates to the SF-25.

“For now, this is how it is. We don’t have qualifying pace, but we’re better in the race. Unfortunately, in qualifying we can’t seem to extract more performance. Yesterday I was extremely happy with my lap, and I’m very happy with my race today. I think we did the best we could. I’m proud of that. Now we need to improve the car to try and fight with those ahead of us.”

A lovely exchange then followed between Charles and his race engineer Bryan Bozzi after the overtake on Russell. Bryan Bozzi said over the radio: “Great job, Charles,” with a calm tone. Leclerc replied jokingly: “Thanks a lot, Bryan!”

“Bryan was very calm, relaxed on the pit wall. For me, the situation in the cockpit is a lot more intense. But we really have a great relationship, and I think it shows on the outside too. The results speak for themselves.”

Charles Leclerc confirmed that today’s result was the best they could hope for this weekend. The podium was unexpected—at the start of the race, Charles was convinced he’d be defending against those behind him on the grid, not attacking those ahead: “Yes, this is the best possible result—by far. I didn’t even expect to finish on the podium. I thought I’d mainly have to defend from the drivers behind me, especially from Kimi Antonelli. We have to keep pushing to the maximum. Hopefully, the updates will come soon to improve the car, and thank you to the fans for their support.”