Steiner: Leclerc Under More Pressure Than Russell in Austria

Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner thinks Charles Leclerc is feeling more heat than George Russell this weekend in Austria. Steiner argued that while Russell hasn't publicly complained about his Mercedes, Leclerc has been vocal about his Ferrari—only to crash in Monaco and retire in Barcelona with a power steering issue while Lewis Hamilton won in the same machinery.

Why it matters:

Leclerc is fourth in the championship on 75 points, trailing every Mercedes driver including leader Kimi Antonelli, Hamilton, and Russell. Hamilton's victory in Barcelona proved the car can win, which leaves Leclerc with few places to hide if he can't match his teammate's pace.

The details:

• Speaking on The Red Flags Podcast, Steiner offered a blunt take: Russell keeps quiet and gets on with the job, while Leclerc's criticisms have been followed by costly on-track mistakes.
• After his Monaco crash, Leclerc switched to Hamilton's brake setup in Spain but suffered a power steering failure and retired while Hamilton secured Ferrari's first win of the season.
• Mercedes has brought serious speed to the Red Bull Ring, dominating practice with Russell fastest in FP3 and Antonelli topping both Friday sessions.
• The points table shows the damage: Antonelli leads with 156, Hamilton has 115, Russell sits on 106, and Leclerc is 31 points behind his own teammate.

What's next:

Leclerc needs a big result in Austria to shut down the noise and prove he can maximize the Ferrari. With Mercedes looking ominously quick and Hamilton raising the bar inside the garage, another difficult weekend could seriously hurt Leclerc's standing at Maranello.