Charles Leclerc is hopeful that Ferrari’s upgrades have helped him recapture his prowess over one lap as he qualified in third place for Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix.
Leclerc starred at Spa-Francorchamps as he produced a sublime final lap in Q3 to edge out Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to emerge as the closest rival to the McLarens.
The anticipation surrounding Ferrari’s new rear suspension soon diminished when Leclerc came home more than nine seconds behind the top three in a 15-lap Sprint.
But while he dampened expectations regarding race pace, Leclerc remained optimistic about the progress made thanks to the upgrades and his qualifying performance.
“I think we expected to be P4, but with a significant gap in front,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“At the end, the gap is still significant, but a little bit less than what we initially expected. So I think that’s positive.
“We brought upgrades this weekend, which have been working since the beginning.
“But we had to do some fine-tunings from yesterday to today and it’s going in the right direction. So I’m very happy.
“I think it was also a really, really good lap. So, I don’t think I left much on the table with the potential that we had today.
“So for that, I’m happy as well. However, it’s only a P3, so now we’ll see what we can do tomorrow.”
The Monegasque has long been regarded as one of F1’s standout qualifiers, but 2025 has seen an uncharacteristically inconsistent run on Saturdays.
Before Spa, Leclerc had failed to start inside on nine occasions — which culminated in a frustrated outburst at Silverstone, where he slammed his own performance over team radio with a string of expletives.
Leclerc cautious despite signs of qualifying resurgence
After a string of Saturdays where things didn’t quite click, Leclerc admitted Spa felt like a return to form — though he was careful not to overstate the turnaround.
“So generally this makes it easier — we’ll have to prove that on a track that is a bit trickier,” he added.
“It’s a little bit better — I think that’s what helped me also a little bit this weekend to be a bit more consistent [with] the lap times in qualifying.
“I think both yesterday in Sprint Qualifying and today in qualifying came together a bit easier.
“That’s been my strength normally, but this year I’ve been struggling a little bit more to put everything together.
“Qualifying this weekend seems to be better, but we just need to prove that over multiple race weekends.
“Also, because the grip this weekend here is incredible. There’s so much grip, but that’s not only for us, I think for everybody.
“So generally this makes it easier. So we’ll have to prove that on a track that is a bit trickier.”
Ferrari upgrade shows promise, but McLaren still out of reach
Looking ahead, Leclerc praised the work done by Ferrari to bring the upgrade package, but admitted there’s still ground to cover if the team wants to consistently challenge McLaren’s pace.
“A little bit, but then I think, as always, and especially for our team, everything is hyped up a lot,” he explained.
“So yes, it’s an upgrade and it’s a step in the right direction, but we are still speaking about very fine differences of a whole lap.
“So it feels a little bit different and it’s going in the right direction. And again, that’s thanks to the hard work that the whole team has done back at the factory.
“Unfortunately for us, McLaren has also brought a few things this weekend and seem to have done a small step in the right direction as well.
“So it’s very difficult to close the gap, but I think we are doing a good job as a team and we just need to keep working.”
He acknowledged that while the update is encouraging, it’s unlikely to immediately bridge the performance gap to the front.
“I think it’s definitely going in the right direction,” Leclerc said of the latest update.
“Once again, as I was saying, however, like compared to the McLaren, I think we are probably average three, four tenths behind in qualifying.
“We’ll do a step forward. I don’t think though that we’ll find those three, four tenths in that upgrade, but it will help us to get closer.
“And I think the more we use it we’ll be able to maximise this and there’ll be some more potential to gain.
“But no, I don’t think it’s enough to be able to challenge the McLaren consistently from now on.”
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