Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) warns: “It’s not enough!”

What can Ferrari still achieve this season? Lewis Hamilton, currently just nine points behind his former Mercedes team-mate George Russell, still has a good chance of finishing runner-up in the Drivers’ Championship. And in the Constructors’ Championship, the Scuderia sits comfortably in second place, just over 100 points ahead of McLaren (you can find the exact standings below the article).

In the last six races (assuming a season finale in Qatar/Abu Dhabi, as F1 is still officially planning), Ferrari could secure second place in the Constructors’ Championship – and, with Hamilton, challenge for the runners-up spot in the Drivers’ Championship. The Reds were strong most recently in Singapore – and are bringing new parts with them to Texas, where the race takes place this weekend.

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc finished second in Singapore behind race winner Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing). This meant the Ferrari driver finished ahead of the competition from Mercedes (Kimi Antonelli came third) and McLaren (Lando Norris came fourth). So what is the balance of power among the top teams? Ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, Leclerc had said that Ferrari had lost a bit of pace compared to the frontrunners. However, he did finish ahead of Mercedes and McLaren.

Leclerc (Ferrari): Not enough!

Leclerc: “I feel that’s still the case. We’ve obviously introduced a few minor updates to the car, which may have helped us take a small step forward, but it’s not enough. We’ll keep pushing right to the end and we’ve got some more new parts that we’ll be fitting to the car, so hopefully it’ll be up to scratch. But overall, we had good pace.”

Ferrari set for an upgrade in Austin

Ferrari will bring a major upgrade package to the next race in Austin. So far, among the top four teams, McLaren and Red Bull Racing have introduced the most upgrades, whilst Mercedes and Ferrari are lagging slightly behind in terms of sheer volume. In most cases (the exception being Mercedes’ Sepang package), the teams have made an immediate leap forward with new parts. Ferrari will be upgrading at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin.

Topic of the week

Topic of the week: MotoGP’s new schedule proved highly controversial

In 2027, MotoGP will also enter the 850cc era with a new schedule. It was not so much the changes themselves as the way the decisions were reached that caused a stir. A prime example of: ‘Talking helps’.

Thomas Kuttruf

Read More

TV Program

Live

Austin: 1. Freies Training

FIA Formula One World Championship

23.10.2026 - 19:25

Leclerc hopes for a big step forward for Ferrari

Leclerc had said on the matter: “Ultimately, the balance of power is influenced by who can get their upgrades onto the car as quickly as possible. And we hope that with the next upgrade in Austin, we’ll take a bigger step forward than our rivals.”

The race weekend in Austin is ideal for introducing new parts because (unlike Singapore) it is a standard race weekend – meaning there is no sprint race, but instead three free practice sessions in which the teams can test different set-ups and gather plenty of data. It therefore remains to be seen whether the Ferrari will finally live up to its own expectations in Austin.