Charles Leclerc says Ferrari is still assessing whether if the power unit used at the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix can be saved, with a grid penalty a live possibility if the team can’t recover it, while also flagging a deeper issue with the Scuderia’s one-lap pace that has nothing to do with reliability.
Leclerc had an ADUO improved Ferrari power unit fitted in Monza, but never got the opportunity to use it in race trim after his dramatic early crash at Parabolica, sending him hurtling into the barriers.
The power unit was subsequently removed, with an older specification engine fitted for F1’s maiden visit to the MADring last weekend.
Leclerc has now provided a short, non commital update on the status of the Monza power unit.
“For now, of what I know, they’re still checking it; we’ll see,” he told media. “I mean, I don’t know yet. If we manage to save it, then that’s great. If not, then probably that’s a penalty at some point.”
Charles Leclerc reveals Ferrari race pace deficit
Past the immediate reliability question, Leclerc used the opportunity to point to a pattern he sees as more structural: Ferrari’s qualifying performance is lagging its race pace, and that gap is costing the team on Sundays before the race even starts.
“For sure, I think our car is a strong race car, but we just need to try and understand how to unlock more performance in qualifying,” he said.
Leclerc traced the deficit to how the power unit deploys energy over a single lap versus a race stint. “We know that deployment is even more of a struggle, I feel, on a Saturday than on a Sunday, and for that, we don’t have any quick fixes,” he said — a rare admission that the issue isn’t something Ferrari expects to solve through a single upgrade or setup tweak.
He added that even marginal gains would matter: “But whatever we can do to try and gain a bit of performance on the Saturday would be very helpful for our race result.”
Taken together, the comments describe a team secure in its race-day package but still searching for answers over one lap — a gap that, compounded by a possible grid penalty, could blunt Ferrari’s ability to convert Sunday strength into results.
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