Ferrari emerged from the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort with a bitter result, returning home with zero points while direct rival Mercedes managed to close the gap to only twelve points in the Constructors’ Championship standings. What could have been at least a partially positive weekend quickly turned into one of the most frustrating races of the 2025 Formula 1 season for the Maranello team. Beyond the contact involving young Italian driver Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc, the Grand Prix highlighted in a very clear way all of the weaknesses and limitations of the current Ferrari SF-25. This car has often shown strong potential on smoother tracks, but at Zandvoort, a circuit well known for its bumps, banked corners, and unpredictable grip levels, its deficiencies were exposed once again. Looking ahead to Monza, the team is expected to perform in a stronger way, yet it will still be extremely challenging to beat the McLaren cars, which have been consistently competitive at all types of circuits in the 2025 Formula 1 campaign.
The Dutch weekend started on the wrong foot for Ferrari and ended even worse. Misfortune struck in the form of the collision caused by Kimi Antonelli, who hit Charles Leclerc, costing Ferrari what might have been a solid fourth-place finish. However, the rest of the missed opportunity was down to errors and shortcomings from within the Ferrari camp itself. Lewis Hamilton also contributed to the disappointment. The British driver parked his SF-25 car by the side of the track after a costly mistake at turn 3. He ended up running high on the banked section at a time when a light drizzle had made the track surface more slippery and reduced grip levels. The outcome was inevitable: Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari slid out of control, hit the barriers, and the incident marked the second consecutive weekend in which the team left a race with zero points scored.
Charles Leclerc, on the other hand, was more of a victim of circumstances. The Monegasque driver put on an impressive display of skill during the early part of the race, delivering moments of outstanding driving that reminded fans of his talent. At the very start, the 27-year-old driver managed to overtake George Russell at the famous Tarzan corner, one of Zandvoort’s most iconic overtaking spots. Later, on lap 32, Charles Leclerc once again executed a move on George Russell, who had regained track position after the deployment of the safety car. That neutralization had been caused by Lewis Hamilton’s crash, which had disadvantaged his Maranello teammate. The overtaking maneuver at turn 12 was particularly notable: Charles Leclerc showed confidence, determination, and perfect timing, surprising George Russell in a section of the track where passing opportunities are extremely rare. The British Mercedes driver had no answer and was genuinely caught out by the boldness of the Monegasque’s move.
The second half of the race brought another battle for Charles Leclerc, this time against Kimi Antonelli. On lap 50, the young Mercedes driver was closing in rapidly behind the Ferrari. When Kimi Antonelli was only two seconds away from the SF-25, Mercedes made the strategic call to bring him into the pits for a second stop, switching to soft tires in an attempt to perform an undercut on the Ferrari. Ferrari reacted immediately on the following lap, calling Charles Leclerc in for fresh tires. When the Monegasque rejoined the track, the two cars emerged side by side through turn 2, with very little margin between them. Inevitably, the close fight resulted in contact, putting an abrupt end to Ferrari’s hopes of rescuing their weekend.
The zero points collected at Zandvoort weigh heavily on Ferrari’s campaign. Despite the incident involving Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes reduced the gap in the Constructors’ Championship to just twelve points. It was particularly frustrating because Ferrari’s race pace had looked marginally stronger than that of the Mercedes W16 over long stints. However, the Italian team paid dearly for its weak qualifying performance, which in turn had been compromised by the problems encountered during Friday’s practice sessions. At Zandvoort, the margins between Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, and even the improving Racing Bulls were incredibly small—often only a few tenths of a second. In such conditions, every small mistake or setup error becomes decisive in shaping the outcome of the race weekend.
Inside Ferrari’s garage, the list of problems is long. None of them are completely new; they are instead recurring weaknesses that the team has struggled with for several seasons. These flaws are likely to persist until the very end of the 2025 Formula 1 championship. The Ferrari SF-25 is a car capable of being competitive on certain tracks that suit its design characteristics—high-speed circuits with smooth surfaces and fewer tricky sequences of medium-speed corners. Monza, with its long straights and emphasis on top speed, is expected to be one of those favorable venues. However, on tracks like Zandvoort, which features undulations, bumps, and combinations of corners requiring a very stable and precise car, the same problems continue to appear. To truly establish themselves as the clear second force behind McLaren, Ferrari must find an extra level of performance, particularly if Red Bull confirms the revival in competitiveness that it seemed to demonstrate during the Dutch Grand Prix after going through a small dip in form earlier this year.
Another important issue concerns Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion showed encouraging signs of pace during certain parts of the weekend but also committed a series of mistakes that raised concerns. It is essential to underline that the Briton is not the root cause of Ferrari’s current struggles. Even if the team had two drivers performing at the level of Charles Leclerc, the overall results would probably not be very different from what they are now. Still, Lewis Hamilton remains something of a question mark. As commentators observed, if harsh criticism is directed toward a rookie like Kimi Antonelli for mistakes, then it is only fair that an experienced and decorated driver such as Hamilton should also be held accountable when errors of similar magnitude occur. His crash at Zandvoort, which put his Ferrari straight into the barriers, was exactly the type of mistake that a driver with his wealth of experience should normally avoid.
There is no doubt that Lewis Hamilton did not envision arriving at Monza in such a difficult position, both in terms of points and momentum. Yet the layout of the Italian Grand Prix circuit could work to his advantage. The Temple of Speed is a track where straight-line efficiency and engine power matter more than mechanical grip in medium-speed corners. That characteristic could help mask some of Ferrari’s weaknesses. Perhaps Lewis Hamilton needs one strong weekend to rebuild his confidence and restore calm within the team environment, but that weekend must arrive soon if Ferrari wants to defend second place in the Constructors’ Championship from Mercedes.
Charles Leclerc summed up Ferrari’s Dutch weekend by explaining that Zandvoort contained all the elements that exposed the weaknesses of the SF-25. He suggested that Monza should be more positive but admitted he did not believe Ferrari would be in a position to aim for victory. He stressed that McLaren, with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, would likely remain fast at every type of circuit. Nevertheless, Charles Leclerc left the door open, noting that in Formula 1 nothing can ever be ruled out. He reflected on the fact that last year he never imagined Ferrari would be able to fight for a race win, but when the opportunity arose, the team seized it and turned it into reality.
The lesson from Zandvoort is clear: Ferrari cannot afford any more weekends where mistakes, bad luck, and technical weaknesses combine to deliver zero points. With rivals like Mercedes gaining ground and McLaren showing consistency, the Scuderia must respond quickly. The Italian Grand Prix at Monza is not only an important home race for Ferrari but also an opportunity to show resilience and determination in front of the passionate Tifosi. If Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton can put together a clean weekend, Ferrari might still consolidate its position. But if the same issues from Zandvoort repeat, the fight for second place in the Constructors’ Championship will become even more complicated.
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