Scuderia Ferrari had a very disappointing Saturday at the F1 Australian GP as Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton could only manage P7 and P8 respectively.
Car incredibly difficult to drive says Charles Leclerc
In Q1, the 8-time race winner looked quick as he placed in P4 on a 1:16.029, a tenth away from Norris. However, as other teams made big gains through the rest of the hour, Scuderia Ferrari F1 stalled out as Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton did not make those steps.
At the end of Q3, the 27-year-old only did a 1:15.755. He found less than 0.3s. On the other hand, polesitter Lando Norris gained 0.9s. It left him in P7 behind Yuki Tsunoda and Alex Albon.
Charles Leclerc explained how the car became increasingly difficult to drive as qualifying went on when everyone is pushing to the absolute limit.
“Yeah, as soon as we started to push the car we found more and more inconsistency, which was a bit of a shame.
“We lost a little bit the pace throughout qualifying. Q1 we were good, Q2 a little bit less good, and Q3 we had to push a lot to try and make the lap time.
“But we didn’t really follow the track for some reason, so we’ve got to look into it., and maximise tomorrow.”
Ferrari set-up changes did not work at F1 Australian GP
Charles Leclerc says Scuderia Ferrari F1 will need to analyse the data to see why they dropped off following a very competitive FP2 where the Monegasque driver was fastest. It appears changes to the car did not work.
“I think we’ve lost relative competitiveness compared to yesterday, which we know what we’ve changed, so we’ll have to look into it for sure.
“But other than that, I don’t know.”
Sector 3 struggles for Charles Leclerc and Scuderia Ferrari in F1 Australian GP qualifying
In the final sector, Leclerc almost a third of a second to the mighty McLarens, and he was even 0.2s slower than teammate Lewis Hamilton’s best in that sector.
He explained overheating was an issue, but there was no signs of panic from the 2022 F1 championship runner-up despite a disappointing qualifying hour at Albert Park.
“Not yet [sure why Sector 3 was so poor, but I think tyres are also where in the last sector you have the most overheating. And I was struggling with it today a lot more than I did yesterday. So this is something that we’ll look into.
“But as I’ve said many times before coming here, it’s only the first race of the season, and it’s only a starting point. It’s going to be a very long season.
“We’ve just got to stay calm, maximise points tomorrow, whatever that may be, and work from there.
“I think this car has a lot of potential, but for now we don’t seem to be in the right window, so we’ve got to find it.”
2025 Scuderia Ferrari F1 car not more difficult to drive
Leclerc denied the SF-25 is more difficult to drive than its predecessor. Around Albert Park last year, Carlos Sainz and the driver of car #16 claimed a 1-2 finish.
“I don’t think so.
“Before that, I had no signs of this. Until now, I would say no. We’ve got to wait and see.
“Today was particularly difficult in Q3 especially.”
Regarding if the car has an operating window that is too narrow much like the SF-24 was in qualifying, Leclerc says it is too early for such conclusions.
“I wouldn’t conclude that yet.
“But in Q3, again, as a matter of fact, it was very difficult.”
Set-up compromises
Asked if they went for straight-line speed in sector 2 in spite of rain concerns for tomorrow, Leclerc admitted qualifying had put them in a bad position with what they have.
“I think both are going together.
“But obviously tomorrow, having the rain, I would say we are a bit more on the quali pace, which means that it’s not a great job today.”
A podium in the wet for Scuderia Ferrari and Charles Leclerc at the F1 Australian GP?
Leclerc is targeting a podium on Sunday, even if it will be difficult from P7 on the grid.
Wet weather pace for Ferrari has been a problem in recent times, and it’s something they have been working on says the 2022 Australian GP winner.
“It’s going to be interesting. I think many people, everybody is going into a complete unknown, and nobody has done one lap on the rain with these cars.
“So lots to learn, and I hope we’ll be on the good side of things and can take back what we lacked today.
“That’s the target [going for a podium]. Whether it’s going to be possible […] we’ve been up and down in the past in the rain; we’ve put a lot of attention and work into trying to get the tyres in the right window all the time.
“Let’s see if we manage to do so.”
Focusing on McLaren and not the likes of Racing Bulls and Williams
In the F1 Australian GP qualifying, Scuderia Ferrari got stunned by Yuki Tsunoda in the Racing Bulls car, and Alex Albon in the Williams as they secured P5 and P6.
Leclerc, however, is not too concerned by it as he feels they did not maximise their package on Saturday.
“I hope we are fighting closer to McLaren. The feeling is that we are closer than what happened just now.
“Just in Q3, we lost our balance, we lost the window. When the gaps are so tight, it’s very difficult to put a lap together as a driver.
“I think the gaps today are bigger than what they should be.”
Nonetheless, he conceded it shows you cannot drop even a couple of tenths in modern F1.
“This for sure. This is a good thing for F1. We’ve got to be on it.”
