Charles Leclerc looks beyond the current difficulties and reveals what Ferrari is ready to give up in order to fight once again for race victories in Formula 1.
The 2025 Formula 1 season has been intense and full of uncertainty for Scuderia Ferrari and its driver pairing of Charles Leclerc and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Yet one priority is clear and shared within the team: achieving the best possible result in the standings, even if that means making some strategic sacrifices along the way.
One of the main areas under discussion is wind tunnel time — a vital resource in developing the aerodynamics of a Formula 1 car. Ferrari may have to accept a reduction in these hours in order to focus fully on improving performance on track in the immediate term.
Under the 2025 F1 regulations, aerodynamic testing hours in the wind tunnel and in CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulations are allocated based on a team’s finishing position in the previous year’s Constructors’ Championship. The higher the final placing, the less testing time is permitted for the design of the following year’s car — a rule intended to level the playing field between the top and lower-ranked teams. For Ferrari, currently locked in a close battle with Mercedes for second place in the championship, the trade-off is clear: securing a prestigious runner-up finish now could mean facing a small technical handicap in car development for the following season.
Balancing present and future: Maranello’s decision
Last month, a mid-season adjustment in the allocation rules granted Ferrari an extra 16 wind tunnel sessions and 100 additional CFD runs. This was a valuable gain, but not enough to shift the team’s immediate focus away from maximizing current race results.
“It’s better to finish second than third,” Charles Leclerc stated, downplaying the impact of having fewer development hours. The Monegasque driver emphasised that the main objective remains to start winning races again, rather than prioritizing beating Mercedes in the points table or planning too far ahead for the 2026 season.
The campaign so far has been dominated by McLaren’s strong form and has brought its share of frustration for Ferrari. However, there have also been flashes of promise — such as Charles Leclerc’s pole position in Hungary, which slipped away in the race due to a chassis issue. Despite the setbacks, Charles Leclerc insists that the team’s mindset remains aggressive: push for the maximum possible result in each Grand Prix now, and deal with the technical consequences later.
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