Charles Leclerc Drops Mercedes Verdict Ahead of F1 Australian Grand Prix

In a pre-season that saw Ferrari generate headlines for all the right reasons, Charles Leclerc has now made his thoughts clear on where rivals Mercedes are ahead of the Australian Grand Prix weekend.

A 1-2 in the first practice session for Leclerc and teammate Hamilton was a strong start to proceedings at Albert Park, but fourth and fifth in FP2 meant the Mercedes' of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli finished ahead of the Ferrari duo.

How the top teams will fare against each other on race day in Melbourne and for the rest of the season is unknown, especially when factoring in Mercedes' regulations headache. But all point to the German manufacturer looking strong.

Ferrari struggling 'compared to Mercedes', says Leclerc after Friday practice

Charles Leclerc waving — Charles Leclerc finished fifth in the 2025 World Drivers' Championship. | Scuderia Ferrari

While the strong times set in Free Practice 1 would have had Ferrari positive for the rest of the weekend, a less convincing performance in the following session might have fans confused as to exactly where Ferrari stands against Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren.

Both Mercedes finished ahead of the Prancing Horses in FP2, albeit with a 0.01-second gap between third-placed Russell and fourth-placed Hamilton, raising questions about who has the best car.

Regarding his performances throughout Friday, Leclerc highlighted both the ups and downs across the two sessions.

"It’s been quite a positive start to the weekend, and we’ll keep working very hard in order to try and maximise everything for tomorrow... FP1 looked positive, but then FP2 I think the teams are showing little by little a bit more."
Leclerc on FP1 and FP2

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The Monegasque star then pivoted to talking about Mercedes, contrasting their fortunes with what he thought about Ferrari.

"We seem to be on the back foot, especially compared to Mercedes, who seem to be very, very strong... In qualifying I have the feeling that it can be quite close, in the race it seems that Mercedes has quite a bit of performance coming, but we’ll see."
Leclerc on Mercedes

In last year's season opener, it was the papaya McLaren of Lando Norris who came home with the win, while Ferrari came home in P8 and P10, and with the lowest points haul of all the top teams.

When asked on what his outlook for race day on Sunday was, Leclerc left his options open:

"We’ll work hard during the night... I wouldn’t say confident, because I don’t know... [Mercedes are] a bit more in front than what I would have wanted for now... [but] if we win on Sunday, then amazing!"