Former Alpine group principal Otmar Szafnauer has suggested Ferrari administration towards calling Charles Leclerc in for a proper mid-season sit-down, insisting the Maranello outfit ought to “depart him alone” as he works by means of a difficult interval alongside Lewis Hamilton.
Talking on the Excessive Efficiency Racing podcast alongside former Ferrari race engineer Rob Smedley and host Jake Humphrey, Szafnauer provided his insights throughout a mid-season assessment of the 2026 championship.
Ferrari entered the mid-season break sitting second within the constructors’ standings on 307 factors, trailing chief Mercedes by 72 factors.
Hamilton sits second within the drivers’ standings with 169 factors after securing his first grand prix victory with the group on the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix and 4 podium finishes. In the meantime, Leclerc is fourth within the standings with 138 factors after securing a win on the British Grand Prix, three podium finishes, and two retirements in Monaco and Spain.
When Humphrey requested how a group principal ought to conduct a mid-season dialog to handle Leclerc’s kind, Szafnauer strongly rejected the concept of an intervention.
“No,” Szafnauer mentioned. “Go away him alone. I’d not have a dialog, however be supportive.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Picture by: Alastair Staley / LAT Photographs through Getty Photographs
“Lewis at first of the 12 months, and I am not talking from information, simply the sensation I get, was slightly bit extra forward of Leclerc than he’s now,” Szafnauer defined. “I feel Charles has stepped it up within the final two slightly bit in direction of Lewis.”
Smedley echoed these sentiments, noting that dealing with an intra-team deficit was a uncommon expertise for the Monegasque driver.
“I feel that is the primary time in a very long time with Charles the place his team-mate has had a major higher hand,” Smedley defined.
“Charles wasn’t pleased with the automotive. I do know that they modified elements across the braking system, forms of materials and stuff like that, but it surely felt like he was simply barely misplaced for a driver of his expertise and the way good he’s.”
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