Ferrari boss makes his feelings known about rumors of Charles Leclerc's potential exit from the team

The Ferrari team boss gave an exasperated reaction to rumors of Charles Leclerc thinking of leaving the Italian team and starting to lose confidence in the project. Just before the F1 Canadian GP began, the paddock was rocked by reports from the Italian press about the team.

The report included surprising details where Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur's future was expected to be under the scanner after a bad start to the year. There were suggestions that the senior management was already looking at preparing a successor if need be. This was coupled with suggestions that Charles Leclerc was starting to lose confidence in the project and could look at his exit clause, which could be triggered in 2026.

While the primary story during the F1 Canadian GP was about Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur and his future, Charles Leclerc's future also appears to be a question mark.

Fred Vasseur was at his combative best in front of the media during the pre-race press conference, where he fielded questions not only about his future but the team's as well. When it was mentioned that the report also suggested that Charles Leclerc's future was also a concern, Vasseur said,

"It’s a good example to speak about Charles. Charles has a long-term contract with us. Every single interview from the beginning of the season, he’s telling that he wants to stay with Ferrari. He wants to win with Ferrari. His future is with Ferrari."

He added,

"But every single Monday, we have an article telling that, 'Charles will go next year', 'Charles will…' At one stage, I don’t know what we have to do. I’m sorry - I can’t repeat every single weekend the same things. But it is like it is."

Charles Leclerc on the key differences between Ferrari and Mercedes

Charles Leclerc has had the 4th fastest car on the grid this season with Ferrari, and although that hasn't deterred him from still securing a few podiums, he's still around 30 points behind the lead Mercedes driver, George Russell. The last weekend in Canada saw the Brit pick up his first win of the season, leading to a discussion on how the respective cars behave compared to each other.

Leclerc gave his take on the comparison as he told the media, including RacingNews365,

“It's strange, because we've got very opposite issues. I feel like they are strong in qualifying, they are struggling in a race. We are weak in qualifying and we are strong in the race. So at the moment, it's whoever is the first to find what's going on in the session [in which] we are not going well will win that battle. I feel like maybe Mercedes is a little bit more up and down compared to us."

Charles Leclerc would be hoping for a few upgrades soon enough from Ferrari as the driver would be hoping for a change in fortunes after a disappointing race in Canada.