Why Ferrari can benefit from Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton’s contrasting driving approaches. Ferrari engineer Luigi Mazzola explains why having Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton with different driving styles is crucial for the team’s succes.

During the most recent episode of the television program Sky Race Anatomy, broadcast immediately after the Hungarian Grand Prix, former Ferrari engineer Luigi Mazzola highlighted why it will be crucial for the Scuderia in 2026 that Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton maintain their different driving styles.

Luigi Mazzola’s explanation
The former Ferrari engineer explained: “Neither of the two drivers will determine the development of the new car, because it is not the case that a car is built for just one driver, such a thing does not exist.

“You, as an engineer, must design a car that is efficient, meaning one that offers strong aerodynamic load while at the same time maintaining low drag, and above all one that provides a good balance. This is the fundamental goal.

“Afterwards, you bring the car to the track. It might turn out that in order to achieve efficiency, the car needs to be set up with a strong front end, which is exactly what Charles Leclerc prefers. That situation can eventually work in your favor, but it is not a matter of saying: ‘Now let us create a car that is stable at the rear, as Lewis Hamilton prefers,’ because if you start with that preconceived idea, you lose sight of the most important element, which is to make the car fast.

“Once efficiency is found, it may naturally end up suiting one driver more than the other. Can I tell you something? In my opinion it is important to have a driver like Charles Leclerc who is able to push hard with a very strong front end, and at the same time to have a driver like Lewis Hamilton who may require greater stability at the rear, because whatever the car turns out to be, you will always have one driver capable of making it perform strongly,” Luigi Mazzola concluded.

By underlining the importance of having both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton with different driving approaches, Luigi Mazzola offered a reminder that what may at first appear as a challenge for engineers — satisfying two distinct preferences — could in fact become a crucial strength for Ferrari in their quest to return to the top of the sport.