Charles Leclerc fires back at George Russell after ‘illegal’ Ferrari allegations | F1 | Sport
Charles Leclerc has fired back at George Russell after the Mercedes racer described the No.16 car as ‘close to being illegal’ at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Monegasque racer was managing an issue that cost him a place on the podium, with the Brit ultimately the beneficiary of his misfortune.
Leclerc seized a surprise pole position in Hungary before the summer break, but lost out to McLaren‘s Lando Norris on strategy before his pace dropped off dramatically in the closing stages. He lost a further two positions to Oscar Piastri and Russell, crossing the line in fourth place. “Well, I saw how slow he was,” Mercedes‘ star driver told Sky Sports F1 after the chequered flag. “I presumed something was not right.
“The only thing we [Mercedes] can think of is that they were running the car too low to the ground, and they had to increase the tyre pressures for the last stint. Because they were using an engine mode that was making the engine slower at the end of the straight, which is where you have the most amount of plank wear.”
When he was told that Leclerc had blamed a chassis-related issue, Russell quipped: “Yeah, he’s not going to tell you that they’re close to being illegal! That’s the only thing we can think of, based upon the lap times and the engine mode they were running and stuff like that.”
Leclerc was asked about the comments ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix. “I’m not even going to comment on that,” he told select media, including Express Sport. “I don’t really mind about what George said after the race. I think it’s… the situation is a lot more complex than what he portrayed.
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“But I’m not really going to comment too much, and I think, as we’ve said after Budapest, we are not going to go into the details of exactly what happened, et cetera. It’s something that we are trying to fix and that we are all working towards, but the only thing I can say is that it’s a lot more complex than that.”
Later, Leclerc was asked whether the issue that plagued him in Hungary could return before the end of the season. “Yeah, I mean, I think that will be around still,” he confirmed. “But we are trying to fix them and to deal with them in a different manner.”
There is plenty for Leclerc and Russell to fight for in the remaining 10 races of the 2025 season. Mercedes trail Ferrari by just 24 points in the Constructors’ Championship standings, and after a strong run of form from Monaco onwards, the Monegasque racer is only 21 points behind his rival in the Drivers’ Championship.
