Charles Leclerc delivers brutal Ferrari verdict after the Singapore Grand Prix, ‘that hurts’

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Ferrari have had another below-par weekend in 2025 as Charles Leclerc could only manage P6 at the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Maranello outfit have been struggling to find the right balance with the SF-25 all season, often showing strong pace on Friday but not extracting the maximum for the rest of the weekend. That repeated at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Leclerc was second behind Fernando Alonso in FP1, but he was almost eliminated in Q2 on Saturday. He ended up putting his Ferrari in seventh, with Lewis Hamilton outqualifying him in sixth.

Jenson Button thinks Ferrari are ‘afraid’ of making mistakes, and that is exactly what they made in Singapore. Leclerc was released into the path of Lando Norris in the pit lane during qualifying, damaging the McLaren driver’s front wing.

F1 fans slammed Ferrari for the ‘schoolboy error’ as they missed out on the front row again in Singapore. Things did not improve in the race as Leclerc and Hamilton struggled to match the frontrunners.

Charles Leclerc says Ferrari are ‘clearly behind’ the top three teams after the Singapore Grand Prix

Leclerc got the jump on Hamilton at the start, but the Ferraris could not make up ground around the twisty Marina Bay Circuit. They did not have the pace to match McLaren, Red Bull and Mercedes.

Hamilton looked quick in the closing stages as he pitted for soft tyres. Leclerc allowed him past for P6 as he tried to catch Kimi Antonelli, but the 40-year-old encountered brake trouble with laps to go.

His teammate got back through as the seven-time champion struggled to keep his SF-25 on the track. Hamilton cut several corners to stay ahead of Alonso, who was furious over his radio at the Ferrari star’s antics.

Crossing the line seventh, Hamilton was handed a five-second penalty after the race, demoting him behind Alonso. Leclerc finished a disappointing sixth, and speaking to Canal+ in the media pen, he was despondent over Ferrari’s situation.

The Maranello outfit are still the only top four team without a win in 2025, and Leclerc says Ferrari are now firmly the fourth-best team on the grid. He said: “We’re clearly behind the 3 top teams. That hurts.”

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Leclerc was furious after qualifying, as he had trouble pushing the car, even after Ferrari tried to fix his woes by changing the load of his front wing at the last minute. It highlights how far behind the team are compared to the top three.

Ferrari are now at risk of losing P3 in the constructors’ championship to Red Bull. Even with just Max Verstappen scoring the bulk of their points, the Milton Keynes outfit are 10 points behind the Maranello outfit, with Hamilton yet to score a podium in 2025.

Ferrari will not want to hear Leclerc’s criticism after Singapore, especially given recent speculation about his future. Reports have stated that Leclerc’s camp have contacted Red Bull over a possible move.

Leclerc says he wants to have no ‘regrets’ over his Ferrari career amid the speculation. The 2026 F1 regulations could be the last chance the Maranello squad have to convince him to stay long term.