Former Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer has a clear opinion on Charles Leclerc’s role at Ferrari: Why he’s speaking out strongly against team orders
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has so far been overshadowed by his teammate Lewis Hamilton in the 2026 Formula 1 season: Although the Monegasque driver won the British Grand Prix, he is already 31 points behind the seven-time world champion in the Drivers’ Championship heading into the summer break.
A few weeks ago, this gap already sparked discussions about whether Leclerc should put Hamilton’s interests first for the rest of the season in order to preserve the Scuderia’s already slim chance at the championship. Former Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer, however, has a clear opinion on the matter.
“No,” said the Romanian-born Szafnauer on the High Performance Racing podcast, where he was a guest alongside former Ferrari race engineer Rob Smedley. “Leave him alone. I wouldn’t have that conversation; I’d be supportive.”
“At the start of the year—and I’m not speaking from facts here, just based on my gut feeling—Lewis was a bit further ahead of Leclerc than he is now,” Szafnauer added. “I think Charles has closed the gap on Lewis a bit in the last two races.”
Smedley: Leclerc “wasn’t happy with the car”
Smedley agreed with this assessment and also pointed out that it was a rather unusual experience for the Monegasque driver to fall behind within his own team. “I think this is the first time in a long while for Charles that his teammate has had a clear advantage,” said the former Ferrari employee.
“Charles wasn’t happy with the car. I know they changed components in the braking system—different materials and things like that—but it felt as though he was a bit at a loss for a driver with his experience and class.”
In fact, Leclerc experienced a slight resurgence after his victory at Silverstone. In both Belgium and Hungary, the Monegasque driver subsequently finished ahead of his teammate—though this was partly due to the Italian team’s strategy.
