Scuderia Ferrari
The Scuderia Ferrari HP duo of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc delivered a spirited charge through the field in a thrilling, incident-filled 2024 Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, gaining eight and five positions respectively. Hamilton crossed the line in fourth place, while Leclerc secured sixth, earning a valuable 20 points for the team. On a circuit notorious for limited overtaking opportunities, the SF-25 demonstrated competitive race pace on both the Medium and Hard compound tyres.
The Race Recap
Following a challenging qualifying session, the team adopted an aggressive race strategy, splitting tyre choices between the drivers—Leclerc started 11th on Mediums, while Hamilton began 12th on Hards. Charles made an assertive start, overtaking Isack Hadjar and Pierre Gasly to run ninth before pitting on lap 10 for Hard tyres, rejoining in clean air. The strategic undercut proved effective, propelling him up the order with consistent pace.
The race dynamic shifted on lap 29 when Esteban Ocon retired, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. Ferrari seized the opportunity to pit both cars—Hamilton switched to Mediums, while Leclerc took on a fresh set of Hards for the final stint. Upon the restart, Hamilton emerged in seventh and Leclerc in tenth. Both SF-25s made swift progress, overtaking the Aston Martins, Antonelli, and Hadjar to move into fifth and sixth, respectively.
Drama returned on lap 46 when Kimi Antonelli stopped in a difficult recovery spot, prompting a full Safety Car. Ferrari brought Hamilton in for another set of Hard tyres, benefiting from reduced pit lane time, while Leclerc remained out and inherited fourth. At the restart, Hamilton used his fresh tyres to pass George Russell and began closing in on Alex Albon, who was battling Leclerc.
On lap 60, Albon challenged Leclerc into the first chicane. Charles defended robustly, forcing the Williams driver to cut the corner—an action that allowed Hamilton to sneak through and later overtake his teammate for fourth. In the closing laps, Lewis hunted down third-placed Oscar Piastri, who was managing worn tyres, but the Australian held firm under pressure.
Meanwhile, Leclerc was instructed to cede position to Albon after the incident at the chicane was placed under investigation. Avoiding a potential time penalty was crucial to preserving his sixth-place finish and the team’s overall points haul.
Next Stop: Monaco
With the race weekend wrapped, the team heads briefly back to Maranello before turning focus to Round 8 in Monaco—Charles Leclerc’s much-anticipated home Grand Prix. The streets of Monte Carlo await, and with momentum building, Scuderia Ferrari HP aims to continue its strong form.
Charles Leclerc, Driver, Scuderia Ferrari
Some days, things just don’t fall into place—and today was one of those days. We were really unlucky with the timing of the Virtual and Full Safety Cars. I wasn’t able to capitalise on the first one, and for the second, we didn’t have the ideal tyres available.
Still, no regrets. P6 isn’t terrible, especially considering how tough this weekend has been. But of course, this isn’t the result we’re aiming for.
Our priority now is to improve our qualifying pace, because the car has strong race performance.
Next up is Monaco—a track that always brings unique challenges. It’s a circuit that highlights a car’s limitations, and setup is unlike anywhere else. Hopefully, we can turn that to our advantage and deliver a result that counts.
Lewis Hamilton, Driver, Scuderia Ferrari
Today, I truly felt at one with the car—something I’ve been chasing since the Sprint in China. Everything clicked: the strategy, the pit stops, the car’s balance—it all came together in perfect harmony. That allowed us to recover strongly from a less-than-ideal qualifying position.
There’s still work to do, especially over a single lap, but if we keep building on days like this, we’ll be right in the fight for podiums.
Grazie mille, tifosi—your energy and passion mean the world. I hope we made you proud today.
Frédéric Vasseur – Team Principal, Scuderia Ferrari
There were positives to take from today—our race pace was consistently strong, the strategy was solid, and pit stops were executed well.
Naturally, there’s frustration too. With better qualifying, we could’ve finished higher. That’s now three or four races where the gap between our qualifying and race pace has been significant. It’s a clear area we need to address.
Lewis ran a very strong race—fast, consistent, and with some excellent overtakes. Charles, unfortunately, was caught up in the timing of both the Virtual and Full Safety Cars. I completely understand his frustration.
At the point the Safety Car came out, it was too early to switch to Softs, so leaving him on Hards was the most sensible call. In the closing laps, we asked Charles to give back position to Albon to mitigate the risk of a post-race penalty, which could’ve cost us several more positions.
