After FP3 at the Dutch Grand Prix, Ferrari and Charles Leclerc have decided to take yet another gearbox. This will be their 4th gearbox of the season. The limit for a season is 4, so if they take another gearbox, they will be facing a penalty. This news has brought some entertaining reactions from the fans.
Things for Ferrari have not been looking great for the past few years. Ever since 2020, they have been facing performance issues with the car. They did seem strong at the beginning of the 2022 season but faced a lot of reliability issues that prevented them from winning any further.
🚨| Charles Leclerc has taken a new gearbox, his 4th of the season, out of 4 allowed in total.
No penalty.
Next gearbox change will incur a penalty. pic.twitter.com/FONYYNRHL2
— Ferrari News 🐎 (@FanaticsFerrari) August 26, 2023
Ferrari is quite popular for making unusual decisions in strategy. As a result, they have faced a lot of heat from social media. They were hoping to be competitive this season but have fallen short once again.
While Ferrari tries to work their way to get back on top, the criticism from social media continues to put pressure on them. There have been comments about Ferrari’s management, engineering team, and even the drivers.
Charles Leclerc has often been on the receiving end of these criticisms. While he has been getting good results in the Ferrari, he has failed to be consistent. He had one of his worst starts to a season this year. His teammate on the other hand has been a bit more consistent this season.
Can Charles Leclerc win a race this season?
At the rate Ferrari is developing their car, it does not look good for their chances to win a race this season. Other teams like Mercedes and McLaren have made much more progress when compared to the Prancing Horse.
Ferrari’s engineering team is not facing criticism for no reason. They have been lacking performance and have failed to develop their car in the right direction. If their car is fast they have faced reliability issues, if the car is reliable, it is not fast. And if the car is reliable and fast, the team often makes bad strategy calls that cost them good results.
Carlos Sainz has often been praised on social media for ignoring certain bad calls by Ferrari. Charles Leclerc on the other hand has often been the victim of these bad calls. It cost him a handful of race wins in the 2022 season.
If Charles Leclerc hopes to win a race this season, the team will have to make a lot of changes. Either they will need to make better calls and developments, or some changes will be required within the team.
Ferrari is not a team that should take pride in finishing 3rd place. The former Chairman of Ferrari said that Enzo Ferrari would not be happy to witness the team in the sport today. Until 2010, there has not been a single decade where Ferrari has not won a Championship. They have now gone 15 years without a Championship.
As it stands, it seems improbable that Ferrari would win a race. But let’s hope that they are able to build a better car and team for the 2024 season.