Charles Leclerc delivers two-word verdict after driving Ferrari’s 2026 F1 car in the simulator

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Charles Leclerc has a chance to finally end Ferrari’s wait for a Grand Prix victory in 2025 at the United States Grand Prix.

After a disappointing Sprint qualifying for Ferrari at the Circuit of the Americas, both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have a much better chance of a positive result during Sunday’s race.

Leclerc and Hamilton will start third and fifth during the United States Grand Prix, and any chaos that ensues ahead of them could be exactly what Fred Vasseur’s team needs to extract some positivity from a very underwhelming 2025 campaign.

The Monegasque driver hasn’t been able to add to his tally of five podiums since the Belgian Grand Prix.

Hamilton is yet to record a top-three finish outside of Sprint Races, although he’ll take a lot of confidence from outracing Leclerc during Saturday’s shortened event at COTA.

Vasseur has admitted to underestimating one decision he made this season at Ferrari, suggesting that stopping the development of this year’s car as early as he did has had a psychological impact on his staff.

However, as soon as it became clear that they were no longer in contention for the constructors’ championship, Ferrari had to pivot to 2026 when F1’s new regulations are introduced.

Ferrari have given their drivers the chance to test the 2026 car in the simulator already, and Leclerc delivered a succinct verdict on his experience so far.

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Charles Leclerc says Ferrari’s 2026 Formula 1 car was ‘very positive’ in the simulator

Leclerc was being interviewed at the United States Grand Prix on Sky Sports Germany by former driver Timo Glock.

Glock asked the 28-year-old: “You have already had a go in the simulator with the new car?”

Leclerc replied: “Yeah, it’s very, very different,” to which Glock followed up his initial question and said: “Positive, or negative difference?”

Leclerc paused for a second and said: “Very positive.”

Whispers have emerged about Ferrari’s 2026 power unit that suggest they might not be the leaders in the paddock when testing starts next year.

Every team are working around the new engine and aerodynamic rules, and the convergence seen on the grid this season is going to disappear.

It’s up to Ferrari’s key technical staff to ensure that Leclerc and Hamilton are in a position to end their growing wait for a championship.

READ MORE: All you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

Charles Leclerc admits United States Grand Prix qualifying was a ‘big surprise’

Leclerc struggled across the Sprint event, barely reaching the top 10 shootout before being overtaken by Hamilton after making a mistake.

He was far more positive in his official media session after qualifying and said: “The feeling in the car was much better in the Sprint compared to yesterday, and our pace was pretty good overall, so that’s a positive.

“I made a mistake in turn five, and Lewis overtook me. After that, it was tricky to get back to the pace I had before the mistake. We did gain some insights which should help us to be in a better place for the race tomorrow.

“Qualifying was quite a big surprise considering how difficult this weekend had been for us until now.

“We put everything together in the end and will start from P3 tomorrow. We’ve learned quite a bit already and have applied that knowledge this afternoon. Hopefully, tomorrow we can have a good start and fight our way forward.”

Whether Ferrari have the pace to keep up with Max Verstappen and Lando Norris over a race distance is yet to be seen, with Oscar Piastri lurking behind them.

If both drivers can keep out of trouble on the opening lap, then the Scuderia could make a decent dent in Mercedes’ advantage in the constructors’ championship.