Podium at last: Leclerc lifts Ferrari’s spirits

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Ferrari received a boost after a sluggish start to the season on Sunday with Charles Leclerc claiming the team’s first grand prix podium of the year in Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

The Scuderia’s fine form from last year did not survive the winter, despite the arrival from Mercedes of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

As Hamilton experiences bedding in issues and becomes accustomed to his new surroundings after 12 years with the Silver Arrows, Leclerc finally clicked in Jeddah on the fifth attempt.

After introducing a new floor in Bahrain last weekend, the signs are that the team has turned a corner.

“It’s the way it is for now, unfortunately, in qualifying, we don’t manage to extract more out of the car.”

“I was extremely happy with the lap yesterday, and I was very happy with the race today. I think we maximized absolutely everything.”

The man from Monaco, fifth in the driver’s standings, 52 points behind Oscar Piastri, added: “We need to keep pushing to the maximum and hopefully upgrades are coming soon in order to improve the car.”

Hamilton qualified in seventh, and that was the position he finished in on Sunday night as he struggles to build on his win from pole in the sprint race in China last month.

Ferrari also had one of their cars in seventh last year, driven by Oliver Bearman, acting as super-sub for appendicitis-hit Carlos Sainz.

Bearman’s return to the track he holds dear to his young heart did not match that stunning debut as the Briton had to settle for crossing the line in 13th for Haas.

Hamilton’s old employers, Mercedes, meanwhile, have enjoyed a bright beginning to 2025, with George Russell at ease in his new role as team leader to exciting teenage Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli.

Russell qualified third in Jeddah, finishing fifth, with Antonelli one place behind.

Russell blamed his inability to continue his podium run on tires, telling his team at one point they were “toast.”

“My tires dropped off the cliff, and it was all about just bringing the car home in P5,” he said later.

“Ultimately, we didn’t have the pace today. Even if we had managed more at different points, that was the maximum available to us this evening.”

Antonelli, who still has the small matter of school exams to revise for, said this triple-header in Japan, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia had also proved a valuable learning experience for him.