Charles Leclerc hopes the Chinese year of the horse brings Ferrari luck in Shanghai after a disastrous disqualification there last season.
CHARLES Leclerc expressed his hope on Thursday that the Chinese year of the horse would bring Ferrari a change of fortune at this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix, following a torrid race for the team in Shanghai 12 months ago.
Both Ferrari cars were sensationally disqualified from the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix after the race for “excessive plank wear” on the undersides of their cars.
China ushered in the new year of the horse last month, which Leclerc reckoned could be a good omen for the famous Italian team whose badge features a prancing horse.
“I’ve been with the team for many years and I’ve been waiting for the year of the horse since the first year I joined the team,” the Monegasque driver told reporters ahead of the race weekend.
“I hope that this year is our one, but we are against very tough competition,” added Leclerc, who finished third in the season-opener in Australia last weekend behind the two Mercedes cars of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
Leclerc acknowledged that Mercedes currently hold a performance advantage, stating, “I think Mercedes are quite a bit ahead at the moment but little by little, I think we can catch them.”
His teammate, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, provided a bright spot last year by winning the sprint race at the Shanghai International Circuit during an otherwise difficult debut season with an underperforming Ferrari.
Hamilton is reportedly much happier with the car this season but cautioned that it was still early days in the championship fight.
The Englishman said it was “far too early” to say if Ferrari could challenge for the drivers’ or constructors’ championships this year.
“I think it will still be very tough to beat Mercedes this weekend,” Hamilton told reporters, adding that other teams like McLaren and Red Bull would also be picking up their pace.
“So I think we will just focus on doing the best job we can and extracting the most from the car,” concluded the former champion.
