Charles Leclerc delivers brutally honest “on a knife-edge” Ferrari verdict

Charles Leclerc has admitted he’s struggling to see any positives for Ferrari heading into the final six races of the 2025 F1 season.

Ferrari have endured a tricky run of form since the summer break. 

They’ve only scored six more points than Williams, falling back behind Mercedes in the fight for second in the constructors’ championship.

The Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday was another low point for Ferrari, as they spent most of the race forced to manage their overheating brakes. 

Lewis Hamilton’s late-race charge on the soft tyres exacerbated this issue.

Hamilton’s brakes didn’t work properly in the final two laps, meaning he had to drive over 20 seconds off the pace.

Speaking after finishing in Singapore, Leclerc conceded he’s unsure how things will improve for Ferrari, as no new upgrades are expected for the rest of the season.

“It’s tough, it’s very tough. We are not strong at the moment and we are struggling massively with the car. It’s not easy,” Leclerc said.

“I wish I could say that I’m positive for the rest of the season, I don’t think there’s anything in the car that proves to me that we are going to do a step forward.

“I think this is the reality of our situation at the moment. I don’t quite know how to turn that situation around because we don’t have new parts or anything coming to the car.

“We did steps forward [at the start of the season] but the others did as well so the gap stayed kind of the same and then Red Bull kind of found two steps in a season.

“First half and then in Monza more recently where they did a really big step forward, and now Mercedes seems to have done this step forward and we are the only one that didn’t find that solution.”

Leclerc feels Ferrari’s pain

Ferrari’s 2025 campaign has fallen well short of expectations. 

The Scuderia narrowly missed out on the constructors’ title last year, finishing 14 points behind McLaren. 

Hamilton’s arrival added even more optimism ahead of the season.

However, as soon as the SF-25 hit the track in Bahrain testing, its limitations became clear. 

Despite a raft of upgrades, including a revised floor and suspension, Ferrari have struggled to compete for a victory.

Unlike Red Bull and Mercedes, Ferrari’s peaks have been smaller, leaving them winless so far in 2025.

“I feel pain for all the team from catering to marketing, to the guys in the garage and engineers who show up every weekend, and they really do give absolutely everything but the car we have is unfortunately not of the level of the guys ahead of us,” Leclerc added.

“Particularly as they’ve had some upgrades and we can’t match them. We’re on a knife-edge trying to get as close as we can.”