Leclerc warns against repeated Ferrari mistake

Charles Leclerc has highlighted the importance of starting next year’s campaign in a strong position as it seeks to end its F1 title drought.

Leclerc pointed to examples in the past when Ferrari was unable to be competitive from the start of the year after a positive end to the previous season.

Ferrari endured a strong campaign in 2024 despite narrowly missing out on the constructors’ championship to rivals McLaren.

It won five races throughout the year, the most since the 2018 season – but as it looks to take another step next year, Leclerc warned against repeating mistakes of the past.

“We just came up short of the ultimate goal this year but momentum is not a thing,” Leclerc told media including RacingNews365.

“There’s been quite a lot of examples on our side where we finished a year strong and then the beginning of the year after we’ve been struggling, so we really need to stay on it.

“We’ve had quite a few examples.”

Leclerc highlights helpful experience

Next year’s regulations will remain stable when compared to the 2024 rules, meaning the close competitive nature of the field is likely to carry across.

Leclerc expressed confidence Ferrari can learn from its weaknesses in previous years to ensure it is in the title hunt in 2025.

“We managed to pinpoint what went wrong in that winter break, that we didn’t do quite right, and that we paid the price at the beginning of the season after,” he said.

“And this is probably the experience that is the most helpful in order to start next year in the best possible way.”

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