Leclerc Pinpoints Three Races as Ferrari's Last Hope for 2025 Win

Leclerc Identifies Key Races for Ferrari's 2025 Win Hopes

Why it matters: Charles Leclerc believes Ferrari's chances of winning an F1 race in the 2025 season are limited to just three specific Grands Prix. This admission highlights the team's ongoing struggle for top-tier performance against rivals.

The context: Leclerc made these comments after finishing fourth at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, a crucial home race for Ferrari. Despite a strong battle with Oscar Piastri, Ferrari's car lacked the pace needed to challenge for victory. Lewis Hamilton, starting 10th, finished sixth.

Leclerc's picks for 2025:

• Azerbaijan (Baku): A track Leclerc loves and has performed strongly on, but acknowledges that strong race pace is crucial due to easy overtaking opportunities.
• Singapore: Qualifying is highly important here, and overtaking is more difficult, which could play to Ferrari's strengths if they can secure a front-row start.
• Las Vegas: A street circuit, similar in some aspects to Singapore, where track-specific characteristics might offer a unique advantage.

The challenge ahead: Even at these preferred circuits, Leclerc admits Ferrari will likely start as the "third favorites." He stated, "If Red Bull struggles for a reason, [we are] maybe a second force, but never the first one, so it's always going to be quite uphill and difficult." This underscores the significant gap Ferrari needs to close on front-runners like Red Bull and potentially others.

Monza reflections: Leclerc described his battle with Piastri as "nice" but conceded that McLaren "just had more pace" than his Ferrari. He concluded, "I don't have any regrets. Unfortunately, today the pace of the car was a little bit worse than what we expected."