Charles Leclerc has emphasized that Ferrari offers “enough freedom” in car set-up to suit different driving styles—an important point as Lewis Hamilton continues to adapt to the team’s current car.
Now in his seventh season with Ferrari, Leclerc has started the 2025 campaign on solid footing despite the SF-25’s limitations. The Monegasque driver currently sits fifth in the Drivers’ Championship and secured his first podium of the year in Saudi Arabia after an impressive drive.
In contrast, Hamilton has faced challenges in getting comfortable with the car. The seven-time World Champion is seventh in the standings, 16 points behind Leclerc, and has not been able to match his strong Sprint performance in China during any full Grand Prix.
After the Bahrain GP, Hamilton described the car as feeling “alien” and later said he needed a “drastic shift” in driving style to manage it. He finished seventh in Jeddah, over 30 seconds adrift of Leclerc, despite an exciting mid-race battle with Lando Norris.
Responding to questions from the media, including Motorsport Week, Leclerc downplayed the idea that driving style mismatch was a major issue.
“There’s often a lot of talk about driving style being critical,” Leclerc said. “But I think there’s more than enough flexibility in the car setup to adapt it to how someone drives. So that really doesn’t change much.”
Leclerc: Driving Similarities With Hamilton Could Help Ferrari
Interestingly, Leclerc noted that he and Hamilton approach corner entry in a surprisingly similar way—something he believes could be a strength for Ferrari.
“It’s definitely more productive when both drivers push in the same direction because we ask for the same things from the car,” he explained.
“I was quite surprised when Lewis joined the team—our corner entry approach is very alike. We’re both pretty aggressive going into corners, which means our setup needs tend to align.”
As Ferrari works to close the gap to front-runners like Red Bull, this shared approach could benefit the team’s development strategy. Meanwhile, Hamilton will be aiming for a turnaround at the upcoming Miami Grand Prix, under scrutiny from both fans and critics.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko recently called Hamilton “desperate” for chasing a faster car, while former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo publicly questioned whether the Briton will ever win another title with the Italian squad.