'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Charles Leclerc was left amazed by the pace that Mercedes's George Russell displayed during the 2025 F1 Chinese GP. The latter managed to pull away when the Ferrari attacked for third place in the race.
The race started out well for Ferrari as both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc gained places on Max Verstappen. Later, Leclerc was fast enough (despite a damaged front wing) to launch an attack on Mercedes's George Russell.
As he tried, Russell was able to pull away on the back straight because of the traction he was getting out of turn 12. Talking to his team as he attempted to overtake him, Charles Leclerc brought this to notice.
Trending
"The Mercedes is a dragster out of turn 12. Unbelievable. The traction they have there is unbelievable," he said on the team radio.
For a fact, Charles Leclerc was faster than George Russell initially on the medium tire. He gained enough pace to get close to him. However, as Russell got into a more defensive mode, he was able to get much faster than the Ferrari over the course of the next few laps, beginning somewhere around lap 18 - 20. After this, Leclerc only got further away from Russell and they maintained that pace (being slightly faster than Leclerc) for the rest of the Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc had to settle for a P5 finish after Max Verstappen overtook him. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton finished P6 to mark a disappointing day for Ferrari.
The Monegasque drove the entire race without the endplate on his front wing after contact with Hamilton at the start. However, he was able to manage the pace.
Change in setup could have contributed to loss at pace, according to Charles Leclerc's teammate Lewis Hamilton
Ferrari looked strong during the Sprint race yesterday as Lewis Hamilton won with a 6.8-second lead from the McLaren. Although Leclerc had only finished P5 in the race (as he did mention that Hamilton was faster than him), the team certainly lost some pace between the Sprint and the qualifying session later.
Leclerc's teammate Lewis Hamilton revealed yesterday that they had made certain changes in the car's setup after the Sprint which was certainly affecting the car.
"We started really optimistic, naturally, but then we made just a couple of small changes, tweaks to the car, and it really put the car on a knife edge," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "I think the wind picked up a little bit as well, so the car was trickier to drive, and it was harder to put laps together."
This fact, alongside McLaren's dominating pace after the Sprint, could have been to blame for Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton's poor performance in the race. The team still seems to be the third fastest, with occasional better performances than Mercedes. Overall, Ferrari did underperform in China despite delivering the maximum.
