Ferrari started 2025 with huge expectations. After finishing just 14 points short of Constructors’ champions McLaren, they were tipped to be right there at the top. So far, they look third-fastest at best.
The pre-season hype in Maranello was real. Lewis Hamilton had just arrived, and the sport’s most successful driver donning red signaled optimism among the title-starved Tifosi, who last stood on the summit in 2008. However, after three rounds, it appears as though hopes of ending that drought are slowly withering away.
In China two weeks ago, the team suffered a double disqualification heartbreak following a P5 and P6 finish — which still wasn’t where they wanted to be. Still, the idea was that they would bounce back in Japan, but that didn’t turn out to be the case.
Earlier today, qualifying pace showed that the SF-25 simply wasn’t close to the pace of the McLarens or Max Verstappen’s Red Bull. Charles Leclerc got P4, and Hamilton will start P8 for the race tomorrow. Thoroughly underwhelming.
One of the biggest issues plaguing Hamilton and Leclerc’s ability to extract results is the car’s balance. Jacques Villeneuve believes that Ferrari is still very far away from rectifying those concerns.
“They know they are in trouble and do not know how to get better,” the 1997 World Champion explained.
“They can see the opposition is going to get better, so it is not looking good for Ferrari,” he added.
Fred Vasseur, Ferrari’s team principal, has insisted since the opening round in Australia that the ‘real Ferrari’ is yet to turn up. And it’s still early rounds, so on paper, they have time to make amends and go for the crown. However, with the McLarens pulling away in front and Verstappen bringing out magical results out of the hat, the gap might just be too big to overcome.
Plenty to play for tomorrow pic.twitter.com/LbuJAl2rKt
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) April 5, 2025
Podiums and wins look out of reach at the moment. To get there, Ferrari’s best hope is to identify where the real problem lies — something Jacques Villeneuve believes the team is still struggling to do.
Leclerc singles out issues on SF-25 disrupting Ferrari’s season
After the Chinese GP weekend, many paddock experts believed that the biggest design concern for Scuderia Ferrari was the ride-height optimization of the SF-25. However, Leclerc has denied those claims.
Lewis Hamilton’s disqualification for an over-worn plank raised questions about the car’s operating window. It has been suggested that the team needs to raise their ride height to avoid such issues — but doing so could compromise the overall performance of the package.
Speaking to the media after Saturday’s qualifying session in Suzuka, Leclerc pushed back on the ride-height theory. Instead, he pointed to other underlying issues the team has been working to isolate.
“We have got some other issues, not particularly with the ride height of the car. I can’t go too much into detail,” he said.
Leclerc also revealed that both he and the team have found some solutions by adjusting his driving style. And with a second-row start for Sunday’s race, this could be a positive sign — potentially keeping Ferrari in the hunt for at least a podium finish.
