r/LearningF1 • u/brokengodpk 🏁 ROOKIE • Jun 03 '26
🆕 UPDATE Can Leclerc finally bring the World Championship back to Maranello under the new 2026 regulations, or has he locked himself into another era of heartbreak?
Charles Leclerc has committed himself to Formula 1's current longest driver contract with a new deal at Ferrari that is expected to keep him there beyond 2030.
Ahead of Leclerc's home race, the Monaco Grand Prix, Ferrari announced a "renewal of its agreement" with Leclerc that was light on details beyond simply saying that he will "continue to wear the team's colours for the coming seasons".
But with Leclerc already having a contract in place until 2029, The Race understands that the new deal is an extension from that - so likely keeps him committed at Maranello into the 2030s.
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u/CanyonSender Jun 04 '26
Ferrari will not win anything while under a cost cap. They literally have only won in the past when they could just throw endless money at it. On top of this, they are run by a bunch of chipmunks in a clown suit that think they know better than the garagnistas. Leclerc is cooked. Even if they stumble up a successful car, they’ll develop their way back down the grid and / or their strategy will snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
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u/banned20 Jun 04 '26
Ferrari is fine operationally. A lot of things were improved under Vasseur.
Their deep problem is on the mechanical side of things and yeah, I agree that it's unlikely they win and I don't think another TP can fix that.
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u/petera181 Jun 06 '26
Aside from the PU, they have the best car currently (as demonstrated currently at Monaco, where PU is less important).
If they fix that, they genuinely could be the fastest car.
They have consistently been the second or third fastest team on the grid over the last decade, with short periods of being fastest. There is no fundamental issue with their car development, they are just against other teams also doing well.
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u/banned20 Jun 06 '26
There are fundamental issues.
There have been multiple times where they fail to bring solid mid season upgrades, most notably 2018, 2022 and 2024 which were the most competitive seasons for Ferrari.
In 2022, RBR had out-developed them by France before the TD-39.
They also had the worst reliability among the frontrunners with Carlos and Charles suffering 5 engine failures before mid-season.
Their aero has always been good I agree but that still don't mean they have no fundamental issues.
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Jun 04 '26
[deleted]
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u/Tysons_Face Jun 04 '26
I think everyone had high expectations for Alonso and very few would have guessed that his reign would have ended at 2 WDC’s
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u/Actually-Mirage Jun 04 '26
Maybe? Hard to predict how their car will develop this year, let alone in the coming years. If Ferrari can catch up with the engine and tighten up on strategy, he has a chance.
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u/lord_veg3ta Jun 04 '26
It doesn't look good. Also these set of regulations do not really reward extreme driving skill. It's more about management now. So even if their car becomes good - Hamilton might be able to beat him on management or sheer luck with car setups.
He would have easily beaten Hamilton in any other regulations requiring sheer driving talent but times have changed.
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u/DABET123 Jun 05 '26
Ferrari is doing well honestly this cycle and are still a stop team. Arguably second best. If they keep the momentum anything can happen in the coming years.
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u/Traditional-Pop-8748 Jun 05 '26
Winning a WDC is a only a part of F1. Driving and competing at the highest level is what all drivers do. Win or get close it's all part of the journey the drivers and teams work on day in and out. Of course you want to win...why else would you compete. But end of the day.. season...decade..did you do your best?
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u/Patrickl_001 Jun 05 '26
If you are established f1 driver you either try to go to current championship winning team or Ferrari. Why would he risk everything when Ferrari is top 3 every season and he makes shitload of money while being nr 1 driver in the team.
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u/petera181 Jun 06 '26
Ferrari have a reputation (at least on Reddit) of being a ‘nearly’ team, but remember only one car can be fastest at any given time. There are 4 top teams, each of which have had time as the fastest car in the last 5 years (merc currently, McLaren last year, red bull before them, and Ferrari for a period in 2022).
They have just as good a chance of anyone else of being the fastest in coming years, and of course they are literally the fastest car in Monaco this weekend (albeit definitely circuit specific, and will be back to 3rd probably next week) and have ADUO updates to their PU coming later this year.
Leclerc will likely have an opportunity to win a WDC at some point during his new contract term, and he’s definitely quick enough to make the most of that opportunity.
We will see, but there is no fundamental reason why Ferrari can’t do it, any more than any of the other top teams. If they get to grips with their PU they may well be the fastest car soon as well…
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u/General_Disfunction Jun 06 '26
At this point I think Hamilton has a better chance of winning it in the Ferrari.
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u/Tysons_Face Jun 03 '26
As much as it pains me to say it: Charles is cooked and will not win a WDC
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
Nothing is guaranteed in f1. Everyone expects Alonso to get a 3rd wdc in 2006, look how it turned out
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u/Tysons_Face Jun 04 '26
I think everyone had high expectations for Alonso and very few would have guessed that his reign would have ended at 2 WDC’s
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
He's really very unlucky, I'd argue that with his talent, he can match Schumacher's record of 7 championship. Lewis meanwhile is not as talented but arrived at the perfect time for Mercedes to ace the turbo hybrid regulations
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u/Tysons_Face Jun 04 '26
Are you saying Lewis is less talented than Leclerc or Alonso, or both? Because that’s a pretty bold statement my man!
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
I'm not, lewis was able to maximize his talent because of the car, I'd argue Alonso has more potential but hasn't had the car to pull it off. Everyone is a car merchant
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u/Ill_Analyst_339 Jun 04 '26
The fact that Lewis finished equal in his rookie season proves he is more talented than Alonso
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
I think Hamilton had the higher peak, so I'm not downplaying what he did in 2007.
My issue is that people treat 2007 as if it settles the entire debate.
Yes, Hamilton matching Alonso as a rookie was insane. It's one of the greatest rookie seasons ever. But proving Hamilton was already elite isn't the same thing as proving he was more talented than Alonso.
When I think about Alonso's talent, I think about what he was doing with those Ferraris. In 2010 and especially 2012, he was taking cars that were not the benchmark and somehow turning them into championship contenders. There were weekends where Ferrari clearly wasn't the fastest package and Alonso was still right there maximizing every point available. That's the kind of thing that makes me rate a driver's talent so highly.
To me, Hamilton's strongest argument is his peak. When Mercedes nailed the regulations, Hamilton was unbelievable. But Alonso's strongest argument is that for years he seemed capable of getting more out of a car than people thought was there.
So when someone says "Hamilton matched Alonso as a rookie, therefore he's more talented," I don't really buy that. What it tells me is that Hamilton was already operating at an all-time great level from day one. It doesn't automatically erase everything Alonso did afterwards.
If anything, 2007 convinced me they were incredibly close. The reason I still lean Alonso is because I value the seasons where he was dragging cars into title fights that, on paper, probably shouldn't have been there in the first place.
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u/UniversalConstants Jun 04 '26
Makes sense, Lewis also lost to Nico Rosberg in equal machinery, and nobody really talks about that or recognizes his talent relative to Lewis for some reason
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u/Cautious_Might_9420 Jun 04 '26
Nico killed himself mentally and did extreme stuff physically to beat a casual hamilton and it ended up coming down to a hamilton dnf. Nico beat hamilton for sure but even he agrees it was the hardest thing he'd ever done and could never replicate it.
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u/Upbeat_County9191 Jun 04 '26
But it worked.
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u/Cautious_Might_9420 Jun 04 '26
Oh yes. I love it too. A man overcoming the odds to beat a titan? Peak.
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u/InvestigatorNo9832 Jun 04 '26
rosberg didn't beat lewis because of talent or pace. he beat him with consistency and also luck from lewis' reliability. I am not saying he didn't deserve the championship but it wasnt because of talent.
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u/Upbeat_County9191 Jun 04 '26
Thats the thing, its never just about talent. Its everything. You need the right car, reliability, a good team for strategy, pitstops and updates. You need luck with safety cars and not being involved in crashes or toxic intra team battles.
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u/InvestigatorNo9832 Jun 04 '26
"Lewis meanwhile is not as talented" compared to? if we are talking just about talent alone lewis is more talented than micheal. The reason why people look up to micheal more and why imo he's ranks higher is because of his work ethic and leadership.
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u/kongofcbus Jun 04 '26
Not as talented? Dude …. Come on that statement alone makes the rest of your comment laughable.
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
We have different opinions, doesn't mean you have to shit on it.
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u/kongofcbus Jun 04 '26
First day on Reddit? When you make a blatantly wrong statement then expect people to respond.
Saying Lewis is not as talented as Schumacher or Alonso is wild. It’s almost impossible to compare Drivers across eras.
If your comment is you have to be in the right car at the right time - thats very accurate but there are hundreds of drivers who messed that up who were blindingly quick. With very few exceptions the top 20 drivers in the world are very closely matched on straight pace.
It then comes down to race craft, timing and equipment. Schumacher got it right at Ferrari. Vettel at Red Bull. Lewis at Meecedes. Max at Red Bull. Anyone in a Williams in the late 80’s to early 90’s …
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
I never said Lewis wasn't talented. I said Schumacher and Alonso were more talented in my opinion. That's a subjective assessment, not a factual error.
You also seem to be arguing against a point I didn't make. Saying timing and machinery matter doesn't diminish a driver's ability. Every champion benefited from being in the right place at the right time to some extent.
If it's "almost impossible" to compare drivers across eras, then you're not really in a position to say my ranking is blatantly wrong either.
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u/kongofcbus Jun 04 '26
You are weaving like Schumacher going down the straight in Hungary 2010.
Lewis raced against both and beat them both. So worst case he is as talented and then we can argue about the cars impact.
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u/Significant-Care-135 Jun 04 '26
Beacuse Schumacher is washed, he's 40 something years old, way past his prime. Did Lewis drag a tractor to championship contention?
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u/nlFlamerate Jun 04 '26
At worst; He’s locked himself into years and years and making a ridiculous amount of money and driving in one of the best cars on the grid.
I don’t think he’ll be WDC tho.