Charles Leclerc praises Ferrari’s « good work » this season
Charles Leclerc believes that Ferrari's execution of the race weekends was the highlight of their 2024 season. The Monegasque driver says he is « very proud » of the work done by the team, which enabled them to fight for the constructors' title right up to the last race.
After finishing the first half of the season with two victories, followed by a slightly more challenging period in the middle of the year, the Scuderia showed a clear progression in the second part of the season. This allowed them to surpass Red Bull and become the main rival of McLaren in the battle for the constructors’ title. This duel, which was fought to the finish in Abu Dhabi, was ultimately won by McLaren with a 14-point lead.
Despite this, Charles Leclerc remained positive about the team’s performance and development in 2024. « I am very happy because I think the first part of the season was not easy », the 27-year-old driver confided. « We were clearly not the fastest car. We even had difficulties in terms of performance. »
« In the second half of the season, we did an incredible job, mainly to improve the car in terms of pace. We gained a lot of speed. We were much closer to the leaders, and in some races, we were probably the fastest car. This is thanks to the team in Maranello, to Carlos [Sainz], to myself, and to the team on the track who did an excellent job with the new upgrades. »
« But I think the highlight of this season has definitely been the execution. Because fighting for the constructors’ title until the last race, if you look at the performance we had at the beginning of the season, that’s where we did an especially good job. So, for that, I am very proud. »
2025: the year of consecration?
Asked about the importance of this factor for starting quickly in 2025, Charles Leclerc warned that Ferrari could not rely solely on this momentum. “I think we had two seasons where we were essentially fighting for the championship,” he explained. “Obviously, one of them didn’t last long enough, that was in 2022. And I think with that, we have grown a lot.”
The Ferrari driver believes he has learned a lot this season. « I’ve grown a lot as a driver, and I think we have also grown a lot as a team. After a long period without success, most of the team members have changed, and for many, it was the first time they were fighting again with Ferrari at the top. »
« I think it’s an important process. But yes, I think over the past four years, we have taken steps in the right direction. With Carlos, we have pushed the team in a very good direction, and I think we are now in a very good position. »
« Of course, we just missed the ultimate goal this year. But I quite agree with Lando [Norris] that momentum really isn’t a thing. There have been quite a few examples on our side where we finished a season well, then struggled at the start of the next one, so we really need to stay focused.
« We had several examples, and we succeeded in identifying what went wrong during the winter break and what we did not do well, which cost us dearly at the beginning of the following season. And it is probably this experience that will be most useful to start next year in the best possible way. »
This season, Ferrari has shown that it can compete at the front, battling with Red Bull and McLaren. The Italian team hopes to win a title in 2025.
