What Charles Leclerc privately thinks about Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari salary, ‘he barely earns half’

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Charles Leclerc is comfortably outperforming Lewis Hamilton by every significant metric in 2025. He has scored all five of Ferrari’s podiums so far, as well as their only pole position.

Leclerc entered the summer break 42 points ahead in the championship, having beaten Hamilton in 11 of the 13 races where both have been classified. He was tipped to have an advantage in qualifying (where he leads 10-4), but the scale of his Sunday superiority is a surprise.

It’s hard to argue that Leclerc is facing a peak version of Hamilton. He’s continuing the theme of last season, when George Russell convincingly beat the out-of-sorts F1 legend.

Thus, Leclerc’s performances haven’t necessarily raised his stock to the extent that one might have expected. But he would certainly be entitled to request a pay rise from Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc is ‘upset’ about gulf to Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari salary

Leclerc earns a base salary of £25m at Ferrari, rising to £39m with bonuses. Meanwhile, Hamilton signed for a guaranteed £39m with the potential to earn a grid-high £83m.

It’s worth noting that the seven-time world champion negotiated this deal in the winter of 2023/24, when he was coming off the back of a much stronger season. Leclerc penned an extension just days before the Hamilton announcement.

It’s also unclear how much of the incentivised money Hamilton will actually earn this year given his failure to finish on the podium. But according to Roger Benoit, Leclerc is nonetheless ‘upset’ by the disparity.

The Monegasque joined Ferrari in 2019 and has just overtaken Felipe Massa to become the third longest-serving driver in the team’s history. He has won eight races for the Scuderia.

“With Sainz and Leclerc, you had a harmonious duo,” Benoit explained to Motorsport Magazin Talk. “The two now – Leclerc and Hamilton – aren’t at odds, but it used to be more harmonious, let’s put it that way.

“Leclerc, of course, knows very well that he barely earns half of what Hamilton does. That upsets him. He’s been with Ferrari for seven years now…”

Why the Ferrari pay gap may not be a problem for much longer

Hamilton brings vast sums into Ferrari through sponsorship and merchandising. His salary may reflect his status as the most marketable driver in F1, as well as the most successful.

Leclerc is also a global celebrity, of course, but not on the same scale. He’s also the third-highest earner in his own right (Max Verstappen is also ahead).

It’s unclear how much longer the partnership will last. Contractually, it should run until at least the end of next year.

However, numerous F1 paddock insiders think Hamilton will leave Ferrari at the end of the year. This comes after he suggested at the Hungarian GP that the team needed to replace him.