After bringing a significant floor upgrade to the F1 Bahrain GP and Charles Leclerc qualifying second after George Russell’s penalty, Ferrari hoped to retain its position in the top 3 at the end of the race following a modest start to the season.
However, the new upgrades didn’t bring that much of a significant impact, at least for now.
A lack of pace
Leclerc started on the medium tyre and lost out to both Russell and Norris on the first lap, dropping to 4th.
Despite attempting to resist a call to pit, he eventually swapped for a fresh set of mediums. The Monegasque stormed passed Lando Norris for P3 and was keeping George Russell under pressure.
Unfortunately for him, a pivotal moment came when Sainz made light contact with Tsunoda, triggering a safety car because of debris. Both Ferraris used the opportunity to pit for hard tyres, deciding against putting on used softs like Russell.
Leclerc gamely fended off Norris until the pace of the McLaren was too much to handle, with the Brit sweeping around the outside into turn 4 on lap 52. In the end, the 8-time race winner settled for fourth, just ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton in fifth.
Speaking after the F1 Bahrain GP, Leclerc was candid about Ferrari’s limitations, highlighting a lack of pace as the root of their challenges.
As for the strong pace in the second stint on mediums, he believes that was thanks to fresher tyres and not raw speed.
“I don’t know, I feel like we are just not fast enough for now. We can put it in different ways. We pushed a little bit the first stint and the second stint was faster, but just because of degradation.
“And then when we found ourselves in the same boat of everyone at the end, we were just struggling from pace, just like at the beginning of the race compared to the others. So I think the pace was just missing.
“Then obviously when the pace is missing, whatever strategy you do, you’re always on the wrong side of things. And so, yeah, we are just not fast enough.”
Leclerc has no problems with Ferrari strategy at F1 Bahrain GP
On lap 18, Leclerc and Hamilton pitted for mediums, despite his insistance on staying out. He explained how the Scuderia was right to pit both cars since the Safety Car came a bit later in the race. Had they stayed out and tried a one-stop, for example, they would have rejoined further down the pack not long before the Safety Car would have appeared.
The 27-year-old also explained that his mediums overheated behind Russell in the middle stint, too.
“I felt like it was at one point, but we did the right thing, especially considering the Safety Car. So, I mean, nobody knew that there would be a safety car in the second part of the race, but at the end, it ended up being the right thing to go for, for the two stops.
“I felt like it was at one point, but we did the right thing, especially considering the Safety Car. So, I mean, nobody knew that there would be a safety car in the second part of the race, but at the end, it ended up being the right thing to go for, for the two stops.
“I don’t think it will have changed a lot, maybe a little bit. I don’t know.
“But yeah, I just think we were just not fast enough. I was starting to struggle a little bit behind George [Russell]. My tyres were overheating [on the mediums]. So I think we could have pushed him to go in, which would have been great, but we didn’t manage to do that.”
“I think it was, considering what we had, but when you look at George, he obviously managed to make those soft lasts until the end. I don’t think that this was a possibility for us, but we’ll review that, but I don’t think that was a game-changer.“
Looking ahead
With Mclaren’s dominance in the first four stops of the 2025 calendar, most teams are looking at them for inspiration on how to match them.
The SF-25, according to Leclerc, is missing more downforce and grip. He explained the struggles between the races and the qualifying sessions, outlining how McLaren can keep their tyre temperatures under control in race stints.
“Yes, I think so. We just need more overall downforce, more grip. I think the balance, we are extracting the maximum out of the car at the moment, but there’s just nothing more. I just need more grip to go faster around the corners.
“In qualifying, I still feel like we can hide that a little bit by doing a few tricks, but then once you are in the race, no grip is no grip. It’s more degradation. So it’s a snowball effect once you are in the race. It’s a bit trickier in the race.
A big advantage for McLaren in race trim
“If we look at qualifying, it’s a little bit everywhere. But I think as I said yesterday and we still need today, the McLaren has a big advantage in terms of managing the overheating [on the tyres]. That’s where I think we need to put most focus as a team, because once come the race, they are just a step ahead.
“I don’t think tricks. I think it’s downforce and probably something that they managed to do with the tyres in general. But I have no doubt that everything is legal or whatsoever.
“By saying tricks, I don’t want it to be misunderstood, but for sure they are doing something very good with their tyres and they managed to keep those temperatures lower than everybody else.
“I feel the tunnel is a bit longer than what I would want. But yeah, I mean, eventually I’m sure that we’ll find our way, but how long before we do, I don’t know.”
