Charles Leclerc delivers emotional apology to the Tifosi as Ferrari continue to slump in the 2025 Formula 1 season, reaching a new low at the Emilia Romagna GP by suffering a double Q2 elimination.
Both of the Scuderia’s cars will start Sunday’s race outside of the top 10 as the Monegasque driver begins from 11th, whilst Lewis Hamilton starts from 12th, on the team’s return to home soil in Italy.
With their chances of the victory vanquished, hopes of a podium perished and even the prospect of big points dwindling, May 18 likely becomes a processionary series of 63 laps to the chequered flag before a very deflated crowd of red in the stands.
It caps off a horrific run of form for a team that came into the campaign with the aspirations of a first championship since 2008, but those hopes are now simply a pipe dream.
Ferrari have finished in the top three in a Grand Prix just once, in Saudi Arabia, but have otherwise lagged considerably behind McLaren, as well as trailing Red Bull and Mercedes too.
Yet things got even worse in Imola as they found themselves also slower over one lap than the likes of Williams, Aston Martin, Alpine and Racing Bulls and ultimately saw both drivers sent for earlier showers.
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It’s the lowest weekend of the season for the team, including their double disqualification in China. At least there, they claimed a Sprint Pole and Sprint win and crossed the line in a respectable position.
In light of that, Leclerc delivers emotional apology to the Tifosi at the 2025 Emilia Romagna GP as Ferrari find themselves poised to lose considerable ground in the constructors’ championship.
“[I’m] very disappointed, especially at home,” Leclerc said to F1 TV. “At such a special Grand Prix for the team – it just hurts.
“It would have hurt anyway, whatever [the] track, but here it hurts even more. I have no words about our performance today.
“The only thing we can say is that we are sorry for this kind of performance at home and in general.”
Is there any hope for Leclerc and Tifosi at the 2025 Emilia Romagna GP?
The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari is not a kind circuit to anyone who qualifies down the order, with its solitary DRS zone and narrow width ensuring it’s hard to make an overtake as Hamilton found out in 2022 when he was stuck in a DRS train for the duration.
And the 2024 edition of the race saw just 45 overtakes, further supporting the theory that where you qualify is probably where you’re going to finish, so is there any hope for Ferrari at the 2025 Emilia Romagna GP?
“Race pace was strong,” Leclerc added. “But we are starting P11. Apart from if something is happening crazy, it’s going to be difficult.
“We are just not good enough at the moment and we’ve got to do better. Unfortunately, this is all I can say at the moment.
“And this is all we are trying to do, is to be better and to work in the right direction.”
Additionally, the softer range of Pirelli tyres brought to the track could create increased degradation that will allow two-stop strategies to emerge, giving Ferrari opportunities to undercut or overcut the cars ahead of them.
They could even cash in on the safety car with the right stroke of luck. There is, historically, a 75% chance of the full safety car being deployed and a 25% chance of the virtual safety car.
Considering Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson, Franco Colapinto and Yuki Tsunoda have all stumbled over their feet this weekend, shrewd strategy and a dash of fortune could allow Ferrari to get back up the order.
