Jeremy Clarkson raises alarm over new F1 problem after Ferrari surprises McLaren
Jeremy Clarkson visits the F1 paddock at the 2025 British Grand Prix at Silverstone
Celebrity F1 Jeremy Clarkson says “breeze shouldn’t be a factor in sport” after a change to the conditions helped Charles Leclerc claim Ferrari’s first pole position of the F1 2025 season in Hungary.
Leclerc stunned the dominant McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris to secure Ferrari’s first pole of the season at the recent Hungarian Grand Prix.
Jeremy Clarkson: ‘Breeze shouldn’t be a factor’ in F1
The feat even left Leclerc himself stunned with the Monegasque quipping after the session that he does not “understand anything about Formula 1.”
Leclerc went on to describe his result as “probably one of the best pole positions I’ve ever had” as it was so “unexpected.”
It is believed that a change to the weather conditions contributed heavily to Leclerc’s pole, taking the initiative away from the all-conquering McLaren MCL39, which typically excels in warmer climates.
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The track temperature dropped by four degrees – from 41°C to 37°C – between the start of Q2 and the decisive final runs of Q3.
The speed of the wind changed too with drivers faced with a wind speed of around 2-2.5 kilometres per hour, with occasional gusts up to 3.3km/h, in Q3 – up from around 1-1.4km/h in Q2.
The wind direction also changed as the preferred headwind on the approach to Turn 2 was replaced with a more inconsistent tail/crosswind, with other key corners on the Hungaroring lap also affected.
Writing in a column for the Sunday Times, Clarkson lamented the high standards across modern sport that mean events are increasingly decided by tiny margins.
And he pointed to the effect of the “breeze” in F1 as a pertinent example, claiming the weather conditions should not be a factor in the result.
Clarkson wrote: “Look at Formula 1 motor racing.
“We’ve reached a point now where six drivers in six different cars can be separated by less than a tenth of a second, and the winner is the one whose car is least affected by whatever breeze happens to be blowing at turn six that day.
“Breeze shouldn’t be a factor in sport, for God’s sake.”
Leclerc comfortably led the first half of the race in Budapest before suffering a mysterious loss of pace in the closing stages.
He ultimately finished fourth after receiving a penalty for erratic driving while battling George Russell’s Mercedes for third place.
More on Charles Leclerc and Ferrari from PlanetF1.com
As reported by PlanetF1.com, it is thought that Leclerc’s loss of pace was caused by Ferrari’s need to guard against excessive skid-block wear, which resulted in his team-mate Lewis Hamilton being disqualified in China at the start of the season.
It has been speculated that Ferrari was forced to raise Leclerc’s tyre pressures and turn to a more conservative engine power setting as the race progressed.
Ferrari has been battling a fundamental issue with the SF-25’s ride height since the start of the season, with team and drivers forced to employ a number of unusual methods to manage the issue.
It was hoped that a major rear-suspension upgrade introduced at the Belgian Grand Prix would go some way to rectifying the issue and allow Ferrari to access more of the car’s underlying potential.
However, the suggestion that Leclerc was forced to manage the problem in Hungary indicates that it remains largely unresolved.
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