Charles Leclerc believes that Ferrari must not slow down the development of its single-seater, while the battle of upgrades is raging in Formula 1.
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Despite a disappointing Hungarian Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc refuses to question the development strategy adopted by Ferrari this season.
The Monegasque driver believes on the contrary that the Scuderia must continue to invest heavily in the upgrades of the SF-26 to stay in the fight against Mercedes.
With the new technical regulations introduced in 2026, teams are still able to achieve significant performance gains thanks to upgrades, unlike at the end of the previous regulatory cycle where progress had become much more limited.
Ferrari is actually one of the most aggressive teams in terms of development, with several major upgrades already introduced since the start of the season.
A car still too inconsistent
In Budapest, expectations were high, but Ferrari ultimately had to settle for fourth and fifth places.
Leclerc acknowledges that the SF-26 remains difficult to understand.
“We paid the price at the start, but, generally, we were never particularly strong during the race.”
The Monegasque explains having felt very variable behavior depending on the stints.
“Our first stint on hard tires was not bad, the last on soft tires was rather good, but there were far too many ups and downs. It is precisely on this consistency that we need to improve.”
“We must stay aggressive”
For Leclerc, the solution lies primarily in continuous development of the single-seater.
According to him, the new rules still offer considerable potential for improvement.
“Upgrades today have much more impact than before, because they allow for very significant progress.”
That is why he calls on Ferrari to continue its efforts relentlessly.
“It is essential that we remain at the forefront in this battle and that we continue to be as aggressive as we have been so far in our development program.”
Ferrari must not slow down
Leclerc also points out that the difficulties encountered in Hungary did not affect the two drivers in the same way.
“Lewis had some problems on a few stints, I had others. It is quite strange to see how inconsistent the car’s behavior sometimes is.”
As the summer break approaches, Ferrari is 72 points behind Mercedes in the constructors’ championship. For Charles Leclerc, the priority is therefore clear: continue to aggressively develop the SF-26 in order to reduce this gap and remain fully in the fight during the second half of the season.
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