Leclerc Plays Down Reports of Ferrari Tension

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz came out on top at the British Grand Prix, with teammate Charles Leclerc finishing fourth behind Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton. But events unfolded at Silverstone that have led to many suggesting there is tension within the Ferrari camp, something which Leclerc has moved to play down.

During the British Grand Prix, Ferrari decided to bring Sainz into the pits to switch him over to soft tires, which gave him the advantage in the race. A race that he went on and won. However, in doing so, it meant that Leclerc remained out on the track on a set of hard tires, which made him vulnerable and saw the Monegasque finish in a disappointing fourth place.

Reports suggest that tension has built in the Ferrari camp as a result of what unfolded at Silverstone, with the team being deemed to have opted to pit Sainz ahead of Leclerc, showing preferential treatment to the Spaniard. When the safety car made a late appearance, Leclerc was leading the race in hard tires. But Sainz was quick to ignore his team’s request to allow Leclerc clear air via ten car lengths.

And, to add further weight to the suggestions that tension is at boiling point, multiple members of the Ferrari team weren’t in the team photo to celebrate Sainz’s maiden Formula 1 victory. It was Leclerc’s personal team made up of engineers and the like who opted to miss the photo opportunity, and they are assumed to have made the decision in protest against what had happened on the Silverstone track.

But, while rumours continue to swirl about the British Grand Prix fallout, Leclerc himself has moved to calm the waters by suggesting “it is definitely not what is happening inside the ream. We are a very united team, we've always been, and it's not these challenging races that will make it change.

The Ferrari driver went on to add, “Were we disappointed after last weekend? I think we were because speaking about last weekend, we were one-two and we finished one-four, so part of the team was disappointed. But this was definitely not the reason whatsoever for not everybody being on the picture.”

Leclerc, who started the season in excellent form, has now gone two months without a win and has seen his title credentials rapidly disappear. It hasn't been helped by problems with his Ferrari, which has seen the Monegasque forced to retire from races. However, after meeting tram boss Mattia Binotto in Monaco recently, it’s hoped Leclerc can find his form once again.

At the time of writing, defending champion Max Verstappen leads the way, with his Red Bull counterpart Sergio Perez in second. Leclerc is forty-three points off the pace in third, with Sainz a further eleven points adrift. But, it’s still all to play for if Leclerc and Ferrari can get back to winning ways sooner rather than later.