Leclerc calls for a ‘miracle’ as Ferrari’s Zandvoort pace vanishes in two corners
Ferrari came back from the summer break looking like a team that left its speed in the departure lounge. Charles Leclerc labelled Friday at Zandvoort “probably the worst Friday of the season” after practice data showed a brutal truth: most of Ferrari’s deficit to McLaren is bottled up in just two corners.
The headline figures were jarring enough. Fourteenth and 15th in FP1, both Ferraris more than 1.6s adrift of Lando Norris. Better in FP2, yes, but not by enough. Lewis Hamilton recovered from two spins to go fifth; Leclerc slotted into P8, a tenth behind his team-mate and 0.944s off Norris’ benchmark.
“Very, very, very, very difficult,” is how Leclerc summed it up. “FP1 was extremely difficult. FP2 was slightly better but still very far off where we want to be.”
The sting is where the time’s going. Leclerc said “90 per cent” of his shortfall is isolated to two corners. He wouldn’t name them, but the timing screens made Turn 1 and Turn 9 the recurring red flags for the SF-25. That kind of concentration is unusual over a lap as dense and busy as Zandvoort’s.
“There’s something our car cannot do at the moment and we are trying to find out why it’s so concentrated in two corners,” he explained. “Normally, that’s never the case. We will try to find a solution for these two corners.”
That will keep the engineers busy deep into Friday night. Zandvoort’s layout demands a car that can be planted over the crests, bite hard on turn-in, and still ride kerbs without spitting the rear loose on exit. When you’re missing a piece of that puzzle, the lap time bleeds out quickly—and there’s nowhere to hide, especially when McLaren looks like it never skipped a beat and Aston Martin’s pace has raised a few brows in the Ferrari garage.
Leclerc was under no illusions about the competitive picture. “I don’t expect to fully turn the situation because I think McLaren is in a league of its own, with Aston Martin a surprise. We will try to improve the car because there is plenty to be done.”
The mood wasn’t defeatist, just realistic. As ever, Leclerc left the door open for something unexpected in qualifying—he referenced that left-field Budapest pole as proof 2025 can still throw curveballs—but he did so with an eye-roll you could hear in his voice. “I’m looking forward to trying to turn the situation around and to make a miracle, but it is not going to be an easy weekend for us.”
Hamilton, meanwhile, had the scrappier session but the better headline number. Two trips over the limit didn’t stop him banking a top-five time, and his feedback will be crucial as Ferrari try to unpick the setup blocker that’s hurting them in those problem turns. Between the pair, the car clearly has a narrow window; right now, it’s shut.
What’s the play from here? Ferrari’s path to relevance on Saturday is simple, if not easy: unlock whatever the SF-25 “cannot do” in those two corners, accept compromises elsewhere, and buy back grid position with a brave out-lap and a tow when the field funnels into the final runs. Zandvoort doesn’t offer gifts on Sunday—track position is king and passing is rationed—so qualifying is the fight.
McLaren sets the pace; Aston Martin looks lively; and Ferrari is chasing answers in a hurry. If they find them, you’ll know by the first split. If not, Leclerc’s talk of miracles won’t sound like hyperbole.
