Charles Leclerc’s unwanted Mercedes pace confirmation as Ferrari upgrades ‘in the pipeline’
Charles Leclerc's fears over the true pace of Mercedes were confirmed in China
Not that he was looking for it, but Charles Leclerc said confirmation of the true Mercedes pace arrived at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Leclerc sees a potential opportunity to keep putting the Mercedes cars under pressure, and looking ahead as the Japanese Grand Prix moves closer into view, says upgrades are “in the pipeline” for Ferrari. Leclerc, though, is unsure how much damage those can inflict when looking at the deficit to Mercedes.
Charles Leclerc reacts to Mercedes pace and Ferrari upgrades plan
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust
Mercedes has displayed a clear one-lap advantage across the opening F1 2026 rounds in Australia and China.
Ferrari, though, boosted by its capabilities off the line, has proven a sterner test in race trim.
Melbourne, and the China Sprint, were encouraging, though Leclerc saw his concerns confirmed during the Chinese Grand Prix.
Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli won the race, 25 seconds up the road from Leclerc’s teammate Lewis Hamilton in third. George Russell ensured a Mercedes one-two.
“I’m not going to say I was waiting for that, because I was hoping that this pace, we will never see,” Leclerc said of Mercedes after the Chinese GP.
“But I feel like, after testing, there were things that were just not stacking up. In the race, I didn’t understand why we were so close in Australia, why we were so close in the Sprint. I guess now it’s a little bit more in line.
“But that doesn’t mean we cannot put them under pressure, and it’s through a difficult situation, because with the fighting of those cars, it can be quite interesting.”
Ferrari’s final gap to Mercedes was not helped by the epic battle between Hamilton and Leclerc for the final step on the podium.
Latest Ferrari news from PlanetF1.com
Ferrari issues rotating rear wing update after Chinese Grand Prix experiment
Lewis Hamilton hails ‘best racing’ of F1 career after fierce Charles Leclerc Chinese GP duel
After the first free weekend of F1 2026, the season resumes this week with the Japanese Grand Prix. After that, the teams will have a one-month break in which to take stock, and put their best foot forward at Round 4 in Miami.
Leclerc was asked about Ferrari’s upgrade plans for the SF-26, as the Scuderia looks to reel in Mercedes.
“There are things in the pipeline,” Leclerc confirmed. “How much is this going to make the difference when we see the gap with Mercedes, I don’t know.”
Hamilton has admitted that Ferrari is unlikely to catch Mercedes in the short term. Former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo, meanwhile, poured cold water on the idea of Ferrari ending its title drought in 2026.
Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.
You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!
Read next: Ferrari handed reality check amid ‘quite staggering’ Mercedes gap
