One key difference between Charles Leclerc in 2023 and Michael Schumacher when he joined Ferrari in 1996, according to Rob Smedley

Rob Smedley, a former race engineer at Ferrari, recently spoke about the differences between Charles Leclerc in 2023 and Michael Schumacher, having joined the Italian team in 1996. Even though Charles Leclerc has been on the scarlet team for quite some time, Smedley pinpointed a major difference between him and Schumacher.

On the Sky Sports F1 podcast, Smedley said that it was difficult to draw comparisons and similarities between both drivers. However, he gave a key difference between them, recalling how Schumacher was already a two-time world champion when he joined Ferrari. He already knew how a championship-winning team operated and saw the opportunity to turn his new team in that direction.

Meanwhile, Leclerc has not won a world championship but is looking to do so with the team. Ferrari's ex-race engineer said:

"It's difficult to say, because when Michael got to Ferrari, he was already a two-time world champion, and he had kind of already gotten his feet under the table of what it meant to win world championships. And I think what he saw there was a team that, once it was operating at anywhere near full efficiency, was going to be an unstoppable machine. Him and lots of other people around him made that happen."

He added:

"So it's difficult to draw comparisons right now because I think that Charles and Carlos are at different stages of their careers and lives."

Michael Schumacher won his first two world championships with the Jordan F1 team in 1994 and 1995. So, he was much more experienced when he joined Ferrari compared to Leclerc.

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Charles Leclerc admits Ferrari lack pace to fight at front

Charles Leclerc has said that Ferrari need to find more pace in the SF-23 after a mediocre performance in the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP.

He explained how he and Carlos Sainz were unable to catch the two Mercedes drivers due to a lack of pace. Eventually, he was stuck at P7, behind his teammate. Speaking to Sky Sports, Leclerc said:

“I don’t know if they were out of reach. The thing is that once I got within a second and a half to Carlos, it was very difficult to get any closer than that – the pace difference wasn’t big enough. I did a small mistake when I was within DRS, and then when I lost it, then that was it. I just stayed there. So it’s like this. Honestly, I don’t think there was much more anyway in the car today. We just need to work to find some pace.”

Charles Leclerc is eighth in the constructors' championship, while Sainz is in fourth.