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It's strange to think that Charles Leclerc enjoyed a 46-point lead over Max Verstappen after the 2022 F1 Australian GP. He impressively won two of the first three races of the season, started every race on the front row, and most importantly, was performing at a very high level.
Six races later, Charles Leclerc faces a 49-point deficit to Max Verstappen. He hasn't won a single race since then and the Red Bull juggernaut is on fire.
This season, at first glance, it has appeared as if Ferrari might just have sorted out the issues that have plagued the team in the past decade, preventing them from winning titles.
As it turns out, the team that was unable to reach championship heights with multiple world champions in Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel behind the wheel, is going through those same struggles once again. Charles Leclerc seems to be facing the same challenges that his predecessors did during their Ferrari tenures.
The lack of ability to win the "mini battles" hurts Charles Leclerc's chances
One of the biggest testaments to a champion's mental fortitude is the ability to win those high-intensity mini-battles in a race. It's those mini-battles throughout the season that ultimately make a difference. Red Bull is a team that tends to emerge victorious over those battles.
In the past, the Mercedes-Hamilton combo had a good grip on understanding how to attack during key moments and gain momentum from that for the rest of the season.
Ferrari, on the other hand, haven't been successful in strategising this way. Whenever the intensity rises, the team has wilted under pressure. Be it in 2010 when Ferrari lost competitiveness and Sebastian Vettel went on to win three of the last four races to win the championship, or the 2017 and 2018 seasons where Mercedes prioritised developments while Ferrari faltered and lost out in the championship.
To further elaborate, the 2010 F1 season saw Sebastian Vettel 25 points behind Fernando Alonso after the Korean GP. Nonetheless, the German went on to overhaul the gap by winning the last two races of the season while Alonso struggled to somewhat keep up with the blistering Red Bull speed.
Things were even worse during the 2012 F1 season as Fernando Alonso had a whopping 44-point lead over Sebastian Vettel after the German GP. Only for Red Bull to make certain adjustments to their car, ultimately leading to Ferrari's inability to keep up.
Similarly, when Sebastian Vettel joined Ferrari and fought Lewis Hamilton for the title in 2017 and 2018, he was more or less on pace with the Englishman midway through the season. However, following the summer break of both seasons, the Italian outfit struggled to keep up with Mercedes for the remainder of the championship campaigns.
Over the last decade, Ferrari has shown a tendency to capitulate when things get tense and this season seems to be no different. As soon as Red Bull started to fight back, Ferrari had no reply.
Ferrari struggles to win titles
Over the last decade or so, if there is one thing that has become evident, it is that Ferrari, with all its might and resources, will always be able to produce competitive machinery.
However, what the team struggles to overcome is the fact that money only gets you so far in a sport where all the top contenders have money. It requires ingenuity, innovation, and a strong culture to rise victorious above one's competitors.
The Ferrari that dominated F1 from 2000 to 2004 evidently does not have the same DNA as the modern Ferrari. There's been a shift in culture over the last two decades. The tense radio exchanges during the 2022 Monaco GP is a reflection of what is going on inside the team.
The team will produce a capable car, fight for wins, podiums, and a wide range of impressive achievements. However, when it comes to sustaining that level of performance throughout the season, it seems to continuously falter. Even during Fernando Alonso's time at Ferrari with the debacle at the 2010 Abu Dhabi GP, it's hard to imagine that it all just came down to bad luck.
During Sebastian Vettel's time at Ferrari, the German took the baton of strategy onto himself after a few seasons (which is never a good sign). Charles Leclerc is currently in a similar situation where the race engineers' strategy mishap in Monaco leaves the driver double guessing every decision the team makes.
The Ferrari driver is usually at a disadvantage in the title battle
Something that fans tend to overlook is the battles that a Ferrari driver has to fight. For Charles Leclerc this season, it's fair to say that other than the error at Imola, he's been driving his heart out.
Not only is he fighting against arguably the most complete driver on the grid in Max Verstappen, but he's also fighting against the Red Bull juggernaut. Due to this, Charles Leclerc not only has to account for Max Verstappen when he is inside the cockpit, but he also has to account for Ferrari's possible strategy slips when things get close. Moreover, he has to make the most of a car that is probably slower than the Red Bull in terms of race pace and one that has recently shown a tendency to break down.
Both Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel also went through frustrating phases at Ferrari as well. For Alonso, it was a battle against another very strong driver in Vettel at Red Bull. For Vettel, it was a battle against the Mercedes juggernaut with Lewis Hamilton behind the wheel.
Being a Ferrari driver is not a bed of roses by any means, and this season, Charles Leclerc seems to be finding out what being a Ferrari driver is all about. Whether Charles Leclerc suffers the same fate as his predecessors will depend on the team building a sense of consistency with regard to reliability and strategy.
