Jacques Villeneuve doesn’t believe Charles Leclerc’s ‘nice message’ to Ferrari fans amid 2025 frustrations

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The Hungarian Grand Prix seemed like just another dramatic episode for Ferrari and their struggles in the 2025 F1 world championship.

After taking pole position in qualifying on Saturday, Charles Leclerc opened a comfortable gap to Oscar Piastri in the opening phase of the Grand Prix.

However, as the race unfolded and strategy started to play a part, Leclerc became a ‘sitting duck’ to his rivals behind. He was overtaken by Piastri as well as George Russell on the final stint and swiftly fell out of podium contention.

The failure to convert the pole into a win has meant Leclerc’s pole-to-win conversion ratio has taken another hit. The Monegasque now has just four drivers between him and another unwanted record in F1.

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

Jacques Villeneuve thinks Charles Leclerc’s message to Ferrari fans isn’t ‘true’

Ahead of the weekend in Hungary, Leclerc told Ferrari fans that his ‘only obsession’ in F1 is to win silverware for the iconic Italian racing outfit. However, former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve doesn’t believe the Monegasque’s words are true.

Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Villeneuve said, “It’s a nice message for his team and his fans, but I don’t think it’s true. A true driver wants to win above all else; that’s all he cares about.

“Succeeding with Ferrari, when so many other champions haven’t, is even better. But a sportsman’s primary interest is always to win, and the years pass for him, too, as for his colleagues: they are all called upon to make intelligent choices for their future.”

Leclerc is yet to mount a serious challenge for the drivers’ championship in F1. He put up somewhat of a fight in F1’s opening year of the 2022 regulations, but inconsistency, as well as a red-hot Max Verstappen, saw the Dutchman take his second consecutive title.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Lewis Hamilton also buys into the prestige of driving in F1 for Ferrari

At the start of the Grand Prix weekend in Belgium at the end of July, Lewis Hamilton revealed that he had been sending documents to Ferrari in hopes of them figuring out a solution to the issues he has been experiencing with the SF-25.

His reasoning behind the documents is down to the fact that Hamilton doesn’t want to end up like Sebastian Vettel, another world champion who moved to Ferrari and failed to reclaim their previous success.

Ferrari’s legacy as the oldest and most successful team to be a part of F1 is one of the main selling points for drivers to opt into a move to the Scuderia. The team are synonymous with the sport.

Legendary names like Michael Schumacher, Juan Manuel Fangio and Niki Lauda have all brought success to the team, but it hasn’t come easy. Schumacher’s first drivers’ championship with the Prancing Horse in 2000 came after a 21-year wait since their last title triumph.