Charles Leclerc 'has probably lost some faith' in Ferrari, according to former F1 world champion

Former F1 driver Emerson Fittipaldi recently spoke about Charles Leclerc and how Ferrari must deal with the driver after yet another poor performance in the 2023 F1 Saudi Arabian GP. The Monagasque has suffered quite a lot ever since 2022, when he lost the championship battle to Max Verstappen due to several strategic mishaps from the team and his own mistakes.

Speaking to Kelbet.it, Fittipaldi assumed how frustrated Charles Leclerc must be feeling after the Saudi Arabian GP. According to the retired driver, the frustration from last year and this year's poor start must be gradually escalating in Leclerc's mind. Fittipaldi then praised Ferrari's new team principal, Frederic Vasseur, and stated how he could potentially turn the team around with his experience and dedication to win:

“Charles [Leclerc] has probably lost some faith in the team and is frustrated with last year. He demands a lot from his team because of what happened last year and probably feels that time is not on his side with the problems that have recently occurred. He should be very grateful to have Frederic Vasseur in the team because he knows how to perform and I’m sure the team will improve. He has a lot of experience.”

Furthermore, Fittipaldi dove deep into how Ferrari performed in the Saudi Arabian GP qualifying session. He stated that the SF-23's race pace and tire degradation could be improved upon, saying:

“Ferrari looked fast in qualifying, but they need to improve their performance in the race. Again, Charles was good in qualifying and did a lot better than the other guys, but I don’t think he can do as well in the race with the current package. The performance of their tires with the package they are using wasn’t ideal. The tires degraded quite easily, but I’m sure Ferrari will improve.”

In general, he believes that the scarlet team and Charles Leclerc will emerge from their woes and fight for the top spot soon. However, it will be a mammoth task since Red Bull looks miles ahead of every other team on the grid.

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Charles Leclerc admits lack of pace in Ferrari's SF-23

In the 2023 F1 Saudi Arabian GP, Charles Leclerc was somehow able to finish seventh after suffering a 10-place grid penalty when the car's control unit was replaced. However, he admitted that the car didn't have enough pace to pass his teammate, Carlos Sainz, and fight other front-running teams such as Aston Martin and Red Bull. Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, Charles Leclerc explained:

“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.”

At this point, it seems clear that Ferrari are the third fastest team on the grid, right behind Aston Martin and miles behind Red Bull.