Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur reveals what triggered Charles Leclerc's sudden loss of pace in the F1 Hungarian GP

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc took the pole position at the 2025 Hungarian GP and looked to be in control of the race before it all turned upside down for the Monegasque midway through the race. Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has come out and revealed what caused the change in the SF25’s pace midway through the race.

Leclerc maintained his lead into Turn 1. The Ferrari driver was then able to pull out a couple of seconds' lead over Oscar Piastri behind him and maintained it for the first stint. However, the Australian undercut the Monegasque, and Leclerc responded on the next lap to fend off the threat.

Lando Norris, on the other hand, opted for a one-stop strategy, which eventually won him the race. Almost midway through the race, Charles Leclerc started complaining to his team via a cryptic message about something not being right.

The complaint continued until the end of the race, with the radio messages getting fiercer and the frustration in Leclerc's voice being that much evident. As Oscar Piastri passed the Monegasque after the second round of pit stops, Leclerc launched another radio rant claiming it would be hard for them to even finish on the podium, again pointing at the cryptic issue with the car.

F1 Grand Prix of Hungary - Source: Getty

George Russell eventually passed the Ferrari driver after an intense battle, and Leclerc finished the race in P4. After the race, the #16 Ferrari driver was asked what the issue was that he continuously complained about, to which Leclerc responded,

“Around Lap 40, we had a problem with the chassis, so now I've had more details about it. Obviously in the car, I had no idea what was going on, I mean I had an idea but it was the wrong idea because I thought it was something that was in our control. Unfortunately, we had an issue on the chassis so I don't have much to add on that.” (via Formula 1's official website)

After Charles Leclerc's interview, Fred Vasseur revealed what the Monegasque said about the issue with the car, to which he responded (via leclerc data's X):

“Yeah, it was a problem on the chassis.”

Leclerc finished the race in P4 after Russell passed him for the final spot on the podium.

Charles Leclerc's “incredibly frustrating” rant on the radio

After the initial complaints about the car, as Oscar Piastri breezed past the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, the 27-year-old came on the radio with a rant about the issue with his SF25. The radio message was,

“This is so incredibly frustrating. We lost all competitiveness. You just have to listen to me. I would have found a different way of managing those issues. Now it's just undriveable, undriveable. It's a miracle if you finish on the podium.”

Leclerc also moved under braking multiple times as he defended the P3 position from George Russell, and was given a five-second penalty for erratic driving.