Charles Leclerc has revealed that Ferrari’s Power Unit energy-management problems compromised his Monza qualifying session, contributing to a fourth-place result ahead of Lewis Hamilton in fifth. The issues appeared only once qualifying began and became particularly costly in Q2, leaving Charles Leclerc frustrated by a Saturday in which the SF-26 was never able to operate at its full potential.
There are two ways to assess Ferrari’s qualifying performance at the Italian Grand Prix. On one hand, there is disappointment because unexpected problems limited the SF-26 and prevented Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton from achieving the result they had hoped for. On the other, the gap to Mercedes, regarded as the main benchmark heading into the weekend, was not especially large on a circuit that was never expected to favour Ferrari.
Ferrari’s Monza qualifying offers a mixed picture
George Russell lost time on his final attempt after finding himself too close to Max Verstappen, but Ferrari had already recognised that taking pole position would be difficult at Monza even with its upgraded engine. The Scuderia had surprised in qualifying at Spa and Silverstone, but those circuits offered greater scope to make a difference through the corners, while the slipstream was less decisive than at Monza.
Ferrari had arrived at its home race with significant technical work focused on the SF-26, including engine and floor developments assessed by Charles Leclerc. Monza’s unusual demands, however, placed an even greater emphasis on Power Unit optimisation and energy deployment.
What nobody had expected was Alpine taking pole position. “I think we made life difficult for ourselves, beyond the tyre choices,” Charles Leclerc began. “It’s always disappointing to finish only fourth, but it’s also true that we expected a significant gap coming here. We probably didn’t expect the gap to the team that took pole. But I’m happy for Pierre.”
Charles Leclerc reveals Ferrari Power Unit energy-management problems
More frustrating for Ferrari than the grid position itself was what went wrong during qualifying. It was not the first time this season that the Scuderia had suffered energy-management problems at a decisive moment, potentially costing valuable hundredths of a second that can translate directly into grid positions.
Energy management is fundamental under the current regulations, and even more so on a circuit where only 5 MJ is available for energy recovery. Using that energy in the right places is therefore essential, and according to Charles Leclerc, Ferrari fell short in that area during Monza qualifying.
“We were far from perfection in this qualifying session. We had quite a few background-management problems. It’s a very demanding track and very difficult to optimise from a Power Unit perspective together with the driving here at Monza.”
The challenge is closely linked to the way the Ferrari SF-26 Power Unit manages its performance and energy deployment, with Monza magnifying any loss of efficiency because of its long full-throttle sections.
Battery issue leaves Charles Leclerc in Q2 danger
The fact that the problems emerged only in qualifying made the situation even more difficult. Had they appeared during free practice, Ferrari would have had more time to understand what was happening and find possible solutions. Instead, the issue became particularly evident in Q2 and contributed to Charles Leclerc coming dangerously close to elimination.
“But I think we were too far from the optimum and in the end we paid the price. It was something more related to energy management. And it’s something we’ll have to analyse, because we hadn’t had any of these problems before qualifying. Starting to have to deal with them during qualifying isn’t ideal,” the Ferrari driver added.
“Above all, I started my final lap in Q2 on the new tyres exactly when the battery problem appeared most strongly. So my lap time was worthless. I was hoping that my first time would be enough to make the cut, which it was. But it wasn’t pleasant to find ourselves in that position, especially here at Monza.”
Ferrari’s latest ADUO-2 turbo development for Monza had been designed to improve the overall Power Unit package, but extracting maximum performance still depends on getting every aspect of energy management right.
“I think with these cars, as soon as you are a little bit outside the optimal PU window, you can lose a huge amount. And the opposite is also true: when you do everything perfectly, you can make a big difference. And I think Alpine and Pierre, together with the driving, did everything flawlessly today.”
Mercedes straight-line strength remains Ferrari’s main concern
There is another factor Ferrari must contend with: the Mercedes Power Unit. Combined with the strong aerodynamic efficiency of the W17, Mercedes is able to deploy considerable power and reach high top speeds even without relying on the movable wing.
“Mercedes is pushing hard on the straights, exactly where we cannot deploy power. So by definition there will be a big difference on some straights. We’ll see if we can find some kind of miracle to surprise them somewhere else.”
Ferrari has also worked on reducing drag around Monza, including changes to the SF-26’s FTM aimed at improving efficiency. Even so, Charles Leclerc expects straight-line performance to remain one of the car’s main weaknesses in the race.
Why Charles Leclerc expects Ferrari to improve in the race
The situation could look somewhat different over a Grand Prix distance. Qualifying often magnifies Power Unit performance gaps, particularly when the cars move to more aggressive settings. In the race, braking zones become longer and there are more opportunities to recover energy, which can reduce some of those differences.
That is Ferrari’s hope heading into the Italian Grand Prix, although Charles Leclerc is under no illusion about how difficult the task will be. He expects the SF-26 to be competitive over a race stint and believes its cornering performance can become an important strength.
The concern remains the straights, particularly in the opening part of the lap, where Mercedes has appeared stronger throughout the weekend.
“I expect us to be stronger in the race, but it’s also true that tomorrow we’ll struggle on the straights. And we’ll be quite exposed to the others. But we are quick in the corners. So I hope that helps us stay with them. I’ll do everything I can to try to produce some magic.”
Ferrari therefore approaches its home Grand Prix with a car Charles Leclerc believes can deliver stronger race pace than its qualifying result suggested, but also with a clear technical challenge to manage. The Scuderia will need to optimise energy deployment, exploit the SF-26’s cornering strength and limit its exposure on Monza’s long straights if Charles Leclerc is to turn fourth on the grid into the kind of special result he is targeting.
Leave a Reply