Jacques Villeneuve doubts sincerity of Charles Leclerc’s message to tifosi as 2025 season struggles continue. Ferrari’s 2025 F1 woes continue as Leclerc loses from pole in Hungary.

The Hungarian Grand Prix turned into yet another frustrating chapter in Ferrari’s turbulent 2025 Formula 1 campaign.

What began as a promising weekend, with Charles Leclerc storming to pole position in Saturday qualifying and building a comfortable early lead over Oscar Piastri, quickly unravelled as the race unfolded.

Once pit strategies came into play, Leclerc’s advantage evaporated, and he became increasingly vulnerable to the chasing pack. Piastri and George Russell both overtook him during the final stint, pushing the Monegasque out of podium contention. The inability to convert pole into victory not only dealt a blow to Ferrari’s weekend but also further damaged Leclerc’s already fragile pole-to-win conversion rate. He now sits just four places away from another unwanted F1 record in this statistic.

Before the Hungarian round, Leclerc had addressed Ferrari’s loyal fanbase, stating that his “only obsession” was to win silverware for the legendary Italian team. However, 1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve expressed scepticism about the sincerity of that statement in comments to La Gazzetta dello Sport. Villeneuve suggested that while it was a positive and uplifting message for supporters, he doubted it reflected the full reality. In his view, a true driver’s ultimate goal is always to win races and championships above everything else, regardless of the team. He acknowledged that achieving this with Ferrari — a team where even many great champions have fallen short — would be an extraordinary accomplishment, but he also stressed that time is passing for Leclerc just as it does for his peers, meaning he must make wise choices about his future.

Leclerc’s career to date has yet to see a sustained title challenge. His closest attempt came during the opening year of F1’s 2022 technical regulations, but inconsistency and the dominance of Max Verstappen saw the Dutchman claim his second successive championship.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton also shares an appreciation for Ferrari’s history and prestige, yet his debut season with the Scuderia has been far from straightforward. At the Belgian Grand Prix weekend in late July, Hamilton revealed that he had been sending detailed reports and data to Ferrari’s technical team in an effort to solve persistent issues with the SF-25. His motivation stems from a desire to avoid the same fate as Sebastian Vettel, another multiple world champion who joined Ferrari with high expectations but was unable to bring the team back to its former glory.

Ferrari’s reputation as the oldest and most successful outfit in Formula 1 remains one of its strongest attractions for top-tier drivers. The Maranello team is woven into the sport’s history, with legends like Michael Schumacher, Juan Manuel Fangio, and Niki Lauda delivering unforgettable successes. But those triumphs have often come after long waits — Schumacher’s first drivers’ title with Ferrari in 2000, for example, arrived 21 years after their previous championship win.