“Do you feel confident telling fans you can win a race in 2025?” Charles Leclerc’s response after Baku debacle. Azerbaijan GP | Charles Leclerc reacts to Baku disappointment and race win hopes.

Azerbaijan GP | Charles Leclerc reflects on Ferrari’s struggles and chances of a race win this season

Following a disappointing weekend in Baku, Charles Leclerc spoke about whether Ferrari could still manage to win a race this season to salvage some positivity from an otherwise difficult 2025 campaign.

The Azerbaijan GP proved disastrous for Ferrari, with Lewis Hamilton finishing eighth and Charles Leclerc ninth. At the end of the weekend, Charles Leclerc shared his thoughts on his performance and on the possibility of achieving a race win before the season concludes.

Qualifying woes in Baku

During Baku qualifying, Charles Leclerc made a mistake early in Q3, which forced him to start from tenth on the grid. The Monegasque driver, who has been with Ferrari since 2019, admitted his responsibility, although the SF-25’s handling challenges did not help. The car’s difficult driving characteristics, combined with light rain on the Baku circuit, made the situation even tougher. The team’s low-downforce setup for the weekend further complicated matters, ultimately contributing to Charles Leclerc’s collision with the barriers.

Charles Leclerc: “Baku result is entirely my fault”

“I think it would be wrong to judge the car’s potential based on today because we started from a position we shouldn’t have been in,” Charles Leclerc explained. “As I said on the radio, the error yesterday was my responsibility. This is a season where I have consistently given my best and done a good job. But this weekend, I made mistakes. Starting from where we were, overtaking was impossible. In the first stint, I think we could have done a bit more, but we had an issue with the power unit that resolved later. For many laps, I had to focus on the mirrors rather than attacking. Then suddenly the power unit started working properly again, but it still wasn’t enough to overtake in the second stint. Our pace wasn’t great, but that’s also because qualifying didn’t go well.”

This was Charles Leclerc’s candid analysis during an interview with Sky Sport F1. Once again, the Monaco-born driver took most of the responsibility for Ferrari’s disappointing performance, even though the issues were not solely his fault. The 2025 car has proven to be a major setback, and both he and Hamilton have suffered as a result. While his qualifying error was significant, an even larger problem remains: Ferrari has failed in seven years to produce a winning car for a potentially world-champion driver.

Chances of a race win this season

Regarding the possibility of a victory before the season ends, Charles Leclerc was realistic: “Let’s start with the premise that it will be very difficult. If there is a surprise, I’ll be happy to go and take it.”

Despite the challenges, Charles Leclerc remains committed to giving his best and extracting every possible performance from the SF-25, while acknowledging that significant improvements are needed if Ferrari hopes to compete for wins this season.