Can Charles Leclerc Match Up to Lewis Hamilton’s Challenge at Ferrari in 2025?

Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari switch is highly anticipated for the 2025 F1 season. The seven-time world champion will be driving for the team from Maranello with the goal of winning his eighth world title. However, a bigger discussion in the paddock lately has been around his upcoming rivalry with Charles Leclerc.

The Monegasque driver has been driving in F1 since 2018, and is regarded as one of the fastest drivers over a single lap. That said, his stint with Ferrari is yet to materialize into a serious championship bid.

With Hamilton now ready to lead the Scuderia’s charge into the 2026 regulations era, where does Leclerc stand and how will this intra-team dynamic evolve? Looking back at the #16 driver’s career so far, there are more than a few compelling reasons why Leclerc can get the better of the Briton next season.

Consistency is key for Leclerc

The 26-year-old has not had the best of luck when it comes to his F1 career. In the past, driver errors and Ferrari’s strategy mishaps have cost him a lot of points and even race wins. These shortcomings have also been prevalent this season. However, his record still sees him as one of the most in-form drivers this year.

After 18 rounds this season, Leclerc is tied with Max Verstappen and Lando Norris — the title rivals — for the most numbers of top-five finishes. He currently sits third in the drivers’ standings, closer to Norris (34 points) than the Briton is to Verstappen (52 points).

These numbers have come despite Ferrari’s mid-season slump. Since the Spanish GP, the Maranello-based team has slipped down the order. Yet, Leclerc has seen himself on the podium nine times this season. Three of those came right after the summer break, including his iconic win at Monza.

Looking into 2025, Ferrari needs to deliver a package worthy of fighting for the title. But they can count on Leclerc to consistently extract the maximum from the car ensuring that Hamilton isn’t the only driver they count on.

Leclerc has home advantage over Hamilton

After making his debut for Sauber in 2018 as a Ferrari Academy driver, Leclerc was promoted to the Scuderia after only one season. Since 2019, the 26-year-old has been hailed as the team’s future.

Moreover, he has already spent six years with the team having successfully built the unit around himself. He also has the advantage of being fluent in the Italian language and is adored by the Tifosi.

Leclerc also shares a pretty close bond with team principal, Fred Vasseur. The Frenchman was also the former’s boss during his rookie year in the sport. Even after the 2022 season, when Mattia Binotto was sacked by the Italian team, Leclerc showcased that he could manage intra-team politics really well.

As far as settling in goes, Hamilton has a steeper hill to climb as he gets used to the Ferrari way than it would be for Leclerc to get used to racing a multiple-time world champion.

Leclerc can hold his ground against teammates

In his seven years in F1, Leclerc has only been beaten by a teammate once (Carlos Sainz in 2021). But the challenge of going up against a seven-time world champion in Lewis Hamilton would prove to be a trickier affair.

Nonetheless, the Monegasque’s history would suggest that he is up for that task as well. Back in 2019, he went toe-to-toe with Sebastian Vettel and emerged victorious. It was the first time the four-time world champion was beaten by a teammate since 2014. He repeated this feat in 2020 as well, this time outpacing Vettel comprehensively in the German’s last year with Ferrari.

While there are a lot of unknowns going into the 2025 season, Leclerc cannot be discounted when going up against Hamilton. The 39-year-old seems to have found his mojo back this season with two wins so far, however, Leclerc would be ready to stamp his authority next season and nip the competition in the bud.