13/06/2025
NEWS STORY
Charles Leclerc has hit out at media speculation over his future with Ferrari and that of team boss Fred Vasseur.
Much like its British counterpart, the Italian media is infamous for stirring the pot should it perceive that a team - be it football, F1, tiddlywinks or whatever not be performing to the expected standard, i.e. winning everything in sight.
In the eyes of some, the recruitment of Lewis Hamilton signalled the possible dawn of a new golden era, but the reality is that the legendary Italian team is struggling.
Consequently, the Italian media has waded in, claiming that Vasseur is on the brink of being fired, that Hamilton is looking for the exit door and Leclerc has simply had enough.
"I'm very surprised," the Monegasque told reporters in Montreal. "I mean, I have no idea from where it's coming from," he added, echoing his teammate's comments. "So I'd rather just ignore it.
"I've never said anything of this in the last few races," he continued. "If anything, I keep saying how much I love the team and how much I want to bring back Ferrari to the top. So I was surprised.
"We surely have a vision that we share as a three," he insisted. "You know, Fred, Lewis and myself, in order to try and get back to winning. And we've been working to put that all together.
"So, yeah, this is for sure our plan, and I think we should stick to it."
Referring to the media claims of unrest within the team, he said: "The pressure, we are already putting ourselves under a lot of pressure. Then, of course, there are some talks that it's not something that you want to hear. But the pressure is normal to have it. When you are working for Ferrari, second is never good enough. But we are all aware of it.
"It's not like the outside pressure is having any influence on the pressure that we put ourselves first. We want to be winning. And as I keep saying, it's not good enough. But I'm not the only one to say that, all the team knows that it's not good enough and that Ferrari should be winning. And that's what we are putting all our thoughts into, to try and bring Ferrari back to the top. At the moment, McLaren is a stronger team and it's up to us to react.
"Definitely need to forget everything about what is said around the team. But I think that's something I got used to with the years. Obviously, there are times where you've got more rumours to deal with, and mostly with you, because the questions are obviously directed into certain topics and it's not always a nice thing to do. But I understand it. At the end of the day, that's how Ferrari is and has always been. So you've got to deal with it. But I don't think we are affected by it."
Carlos Sainz, who was dropped by Ferrari in favour of Hamilton, also stands by his old boss.
"I have a great relationship with him," said the Spaniard. "In the past, obviously, we went through a tough month where he didn't want me and signed Lewis, but apart from that, we made peace about it, and I get on well, and I always rated him as a team principal and as a person."
Asked about his former team's predicament, he said: "I can only talk about my time there when I left, and my feeling is that the team, the car, we felt like we were ready to fight for the championship.
"I thought, honestly, Ferrari could be in the fight for the championship this year," he continued. "That's what I communicated to Charles and to the team. For me, everything was coming into place.
"I had zero involvement in the development of the 25' cars, so I don't know where they went with the balance, with the set-up, and why they are struggling to get a result this year out of it," he admitted.
"But at the same time, probably, McLaren is just doing an excellent job. And if McLaren is doing such a good job, then it doesn't matter how good you do, there's just someone performing at a very high level with two super strong drivers and doing very, very good in F1 right now, and that is McLaren."