F1 / NEWS & CONTEXT

Leclerc urges Ferrari response as podium drought reaches five races

Charles Leclerc says Ferrari must respond to gains he sees from McLaren and Red Bull after going five consecutive grands prix without a podium.

GPBeat · Newsroom28 Sept 2026, 13:21 · 1 min

Leclerc made his assessment after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, in comments to media including RacingNews365 published on 28 September. He said the Baku circuit did not particularly suit Ferrari’s car, but argued that McLaren and Red Bull had improved through recent upgrades while Ferrari had not made the same progress.

McLaren and Red Bull brought car updates to Baku, while Ferrari brought none, RacingNews365 reported. Ferrari has now gone five consecutive grands prix without a podium. Leclerc warned that losing pace now could make it difficult to recover later and urged the team to respond soon.

Ferrari was still second in the constructors’ championship, 72 points ahead of McLaren at the time of the report. McLaren scored no points in Baku. Leclerc’s concern was about the cars’ relative performance rather than Ferrari’s current championship position.

Leclerc said Ferrari has more changes coming and expects them to help. He left open whether they would be enough to close the pace gap, given that he does not know what its rivals have planned.

Sources 01

SOURCECharles Leclerc calls for Ferrari action after latest worryRacingNews365 English · Source date as found: 2026-09-28

Source context

RacingNews365 reported Leclerc’s remarks on 28 September 2026. Ferrari’s forthcoming changes have no stated specification or arrival date.

Claims and supporting evidence 4

After the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc said Ferrari must respond to what he considered performance gains from McLaren and Red Bull's upgrades. This is Leclerc's assessment, not a measured comparison established by the supplied source.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Leclerc's assessment of Ferrari's competitiveness, as reported by Fergal Walsh for RacingNews365 Reported on 28 September 2026, after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix RacingNews365 reports remarks made to media including itself; the supplied material contains no independent performance analysis.

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RacingNews365 reports that McLaren and Red Bull brought notable car upgrades to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, while Ferrari brought none there. It also reports that Ferrari had gone five consecutive grands prix without a podium finish.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. RacingNews365's account of the Azerbaijan race and Ferrari's recent podium results Through the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, before the report of 28 September 2026 These race and upgrade details are reported by the single supplied publication; they are not independently checked in the supplied documents.

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At the time of the report, RacingNews365 placed Ferrari second in the constructors' championship, 72 points ahead of McLaren, and said McLaren scored no points in Baku.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Constructors' championship position reported by RacingNews365 As reported on 28 September 2026 The standing is a dated snapshot reported by RacingNews365, not an independently supplied official classification.

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Leclerc said Ferrari had further changes coming that should help it make progress, but explicitly questioned whether they would be enough to close the gap, given uncertainty about rivals' plans.

This source finding must be read within the stated scope and source context. Leclerc's account of forthcoming Ferrari changes Remarks reported on 28 September 2026; arrival date of the changes unspecified These are Leclerc's expectations, not a confirmed performance result or a specified upgrade schedule.

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This article was produced with AI assistance. Source references make its supporting evidence traceable.