Ferrari’s measurable quality leap has effectively restored the team as the second strongest force in the Formula 1 field. The introduction of the new floor design has significantly improved the overall drivability and handling characteristics of the Ferrari SF-25 car: Charles Leclerc managed to reach the podium once again, and Lewis Hamilton finished just behind his teammate, which allowed the Scuderia Ferrari team to reclaim second place in the highly competitive Constructors’ Championship standings. This achievement marks the promising beginning of a growth trajectory that could well revive Ferrari’s competitive edge and challenge in the second half of the 2025 Formula 1 season.
Although nobody from the Ferrari team openly celebrated securing the third and fourth places on the race day podium, the entire weekend at the Spielberg circuit sent strong and encouraging signals of a Ferrari team that is clearly growing and improving its performance. Prior to this, there had been a notable breakthrough performance during the Monaco Grand Prix, but the unique and atypical characteristics of the Monaco street circuit make it less suitable for any reliable technical assessment or comparison with other tracks.
The Red Bull Ring, in Austria, is a permanent racing circuit known for offering very few concessions to the drivers and teams, making it a challenging venue. Furthermore, the 2025 edition of the Austrian Grand Prix will be remembered as one of the hottest races in Formula 1 history. At the start of the race, the track temperature reached a scorching 50.5 degrees Celsius, while the ambient air temperature was recorded to be well above 30 degrees Celsius, creating tough conditions for all the teams and drivers.
The most encouraging and positive aspect that emerged from the race completed by both Ferrari cars was not only the recovery of the second position in the Constructors’ standings (a classification influenced by many factors across the season) but, more importantly, the consistent race pace maintained by both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton throughout the event. While there were few doubts about the race pace of the two McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, many experts and insiders had predicted a record-breaking gap between the McLaren duo and the rest of the field before the start of the race.
After 70 intense and demanding laps, during which Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri pushed their cars to the absolute limit of their capabilities, the gap between the race winner and Charles Leclerc was 19.5 seconds, equivalent to roughly three-tenths of a second per lap. In the context of this highly competitive 2025 Formula 1 season, that is considered a substantial margin, yet the Mercedes team’s performance was even more disappointing, especially considering their dominant form just two weeks earlier at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.
It became increasingly clear that the improved drivability and handling characteristics of the Ferrari SF-25, thanks largely to the arrival of the new floor upgrade, had a positive impact on the race performance. At the end of the race, the facial expressions of both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton did not show the same level of frustration and dissatisfaction that had been visible on several previous occasions, including the Canadian Grand Prix. Of course, it is unrealistic to expect Charles Leclerc to be overly joyful about a third-place finish, but given the difficulties Ferrari has faced during the 2025 season and the performance seen from the beginning of the year, there are genuinely positive signs in the progress shown at Spielberg.
In the final sixteen laps of the race, Charles Leclerc lost less than four seconds to the leading duo, confirming that Ferrari’s main performance weakness continues to lie in the first stint of the race with full fuel tanks, a phase during which Leclerc lost approximately six seconds compared to his rivals.
Charles Leclerc mentioned that the team’s overall weekend was very positive, with several updates introduced that helped them take a significant step forward and begin closing the performance gap with the McLaren team. Unfortunately, he acknowledged that the McLaren cars were simply faster during the race. He explained that at the first corner he tried to close the gap on Lando Norris but inadvertently left the door open for Oscar Piastri to overtake him. Charles pushed hard in the first stint, experiencing a considerable amount of tire degradation, but he accepted that as part of the racing challenge. He stated that there were no regrets about the weekend’s performance.
The persistent and somewhat puzzling lift-and-coast driving strategy, which the Ferrari pit wall has been demanding from its drivers, remains a mystery. This approach seemed linked to concerns about brake overheating at the Montreal Grand Prix and was confirmed again during the Austrian Grand Prix at Spielberg.
Lewis Hamilton also managed to show a slight smile by the end of the race. He extracted the maximum possible from the car and at times was able to match the pace of Charles Leclerc, confirming that his feeling and confidence with the Ferrari SF-25 are steadily improving. Lewis Hamilton is now following his own approach to car setup, moving away from the setup used by Charles Leclerc, which Hamilton described as having excessive oversteer. Instead, Hamilton is trying to adapt the SF-25 to better suit his driving style. Toward the end of the second stint, Lewis Hamilton even considered the possibility of attempting to complete the race with only one pit stop, but the Ferrari team management was firm in their strategy, and Hamilton complied by coming into the pits as instructed.
Jerome D’Ambrosio explained that there was no reason to deviate from the pre-planned race strategy since the McLaren cars were clearly much faster and well ahead, while George Russell in the Mercedes was far behind. For this reason, it was deemed sensible and safe not to take unnecessary risks and to continue with what was considered the optimal strategy. He acknowledged the driver’s perspective, noting that drivers always wonder if a different choice might yield better results, which is natural and valid. After the race, the team reviewed the data with Lewis Hamilton, and they collectively concluded that the strategy they followed was indeed the most sensible and logical option.
At the end of the weekend, Jerome D’Ambrosio expressed satisfaction with the overall outcome of the race weekend. He mentioned that for some time, Ferrari’s sporting director, Fred Vasseur, has emphasized the importance of combining all elements effectively and delivering a clean, trouble-free weekend — and that is exactly what the team achieved in Austria. In a race that was relatively straightforward and free from complications, both Ferrari drivers demonstrated very similar race pace. Obviously, the gap to the McLaren team remains significant, especially during the race, but the performance difference has been fluctuating from race to race throughout this 2025 season.
Ferrari is now approaching a critical and decisive phase of its 2025 Formula 1 campaign. The progress and improvements witnessed at Spielberg will need to be confirmed and consolidated soon at the upcoming British Grand Prix in Silverstone, followed by the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, where additional upgrades to the cars are expected to be introduced. Before the summer break, the team’s objectives and realistic targets for the remainder of the season will become much clearer for both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton as they continue to battle in what has been a very challenging and hard-fought world championship so far.
— see video above —
Leave a Reply