Tenth placed qualifier Charles Leclerc of Monaco and Scuderia Ferrari congratulates Pole position qualifier Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing in parc ferme during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit on September 20, 2025 in Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo by Steven Tee/LAT Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //
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Formula 1 News: Leclerc doubts Verstappen can catch McLarens

Andrew Maitland

(GMM) Charles Leclerc (pictured congratulating Verstappen) has poured cold water on suggestions that Max Verstappen is back in the hunt for a fifth consecutive world championship, despite the pair recently trading compliments about one another’s form.

“I don’t think Max is leaving anything behind, I’m sure of that,” the Ferrari driver said after Baku, where Red Bull’s resurgence delivered a repeat of Verstappen’s pole-and-win triumph at Monza.

“They’ve definitely made a step forward with the car and are now at a very high level,” said Leclerc. “It’s close between McLaren and Red Bull, and I think Max is doing fantastically at the moment. So congratulations to him.

“The last two weekends haven’t been strong from McLaren, but I don’t think Red Bull will dominate again.”

Despite Verstappen’s back-to-back wins at Monza and Baku, he remains 69 points adrift of championship leader Oscar Piastri, and 44 behind Lando Norris.

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Leclerc therefore doubts the Dutchman can close the gap. “I’d be surprised if Max becomes champion. It’s just going to be Oscar or Lando this year,” he said.

Away from the title fight, Leclerc also weighed in on Liberty Media’s push for more sprint weekends and other format tweaks. “We haven’t really talked about it much yet,” he said. “But in my opinion, the number of sprint weekends we have is sufficient.

“I wouldn’t necessarily want more,” said the Monegasque.

On the idea of reverse grids, he was even clearer. “I don’t know, at least not on a normal weekend. You could consider it for the sprints, but it’s really not something that should be part of Formula 1’s DNA.”

As for shorter grands prix, Leclerc insisted: “I don’t think we need to reinvent anything.”

Charles Leclerc 2025 Azerbaijan GP. Photo courtesy of Ferrari

Teammate Lewis Hamilton, however, offered a slightly different perspective. “I like sprint weekends,” said the seven time world champion.

“Years ago, I complained about how we had the same weekend structure every time. So, we made some changes. I think sprints are pretty fun,” he told reporters.

“These weekends are more intense due to the smaller number of practice sessions. Fans also like this format. From an entertainment standpoint, there are some stages where it would be great to have sprint races.”