Leclerc Warns Ferrari’s Latest Upgrade Still Falls Short for Championship Contention

Charles Leclerc cautions that Ferrari's improvements are ‘insufficient’ to ‘secure victories for the remainder of the season.’

"Is it sufficient to secure wins for the rest of the season? Not quite yet, but we have made significant progress."

Charles Leclerc has cautioned that Ferrari must improve their performance to consistently compete with McLaren throughout the rest of the 2024 F1 season.

Leclerc secured his second win of the season by effectively using a one-stop strategy, outpacing McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

Prior to Piastri's second visit to the pits, Leclerc was trailing by five seconds, underscoring McLaren's dominance with the fastest vehicle at Monza.

Ferrari unveiled a major update for the Italian Grand Prix aimed at addressing their issues with car bouncing.

During the FIA press conference that took place after the race in Monza, Leclerc advised Ferrari to "exercise caution."

“We need to be careful,” he commented. “Since Monaco, I believe we've experienced our four most challenging races of the season, as Monaco's conditions were uniquely suited to our car back then. Monza is another track with its own unique characteristics.”

“There were many straight sections and few turns on this track. We had a specific rear wing designed for this course, which contributed to our victory today. We also introduced another enhancement that I believe has narrowed the gap between us and McLaren. However, I don’t think it will make us the dominant car for the remainder of the season on different tracks.”

"We still have much to accomplish, yet I'm very pleased to have secured one here in Italy."

Although Leclerc has faced challenges since the Monaco race, he is only 24 points behind Norris in the drivers' standings.

In the Constructors' Championship, Ferrari trails Red Bull by only 39 points.

However, Leclerc has tempered expectations, referencing previous championship speculation after his victory in Monaco.

"We performed exceptionally well this weekend, but Baku could present a completely different challenge, and Singapore will also be unique. So, we need to start fresh. We successfully transitioned from Monaco to Montreal, and as demonstrated, the shift from one weekend to the next was significant."

"We then experienced some of the toughest races of the season as we tried to figure out what was happening with our car. Hopefully, we won't face another string of challenging races moving forward, and I don’t believe that will happen."

"However, it's crucial to remember that not just the team, but also external expectations shouldn't skyrocket from one race to the next, as that wouldn't be realistic."

"Have we made progress? Yes. Is it sufficient to start winning races consistently for the rest of the season? Not quite yet, but we've moved in the right direction."

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