Charles Leclerc rejects George Russell theory over 'complex' Ferrari problem

Charles Leclerc has rejected George Russell's theory surrounding the Ferrari driver's sudden pace loss in Hungary, declaring it as a "complex" problem. 

Prior to the F1 summer break, Leclerc claimed a shock pole position at the Hungarian GP, before leading the opening two stints of the event. 

However, unexpectedly, he lost considerable pace following his final pit stop, causing the Monegasque to fall from first to fourth.

It triggered a series of outbursts over the radio from Leclerc, who later retracted his comments in the post-race media pen. Despite this, Ferrari failed to outline what the actual issue was. 

Russell revealed Mercedes' theory that Ferrari increased the pressure in Leclerc's tyres, lifting the plank away from the Hungaroring's surface to avoid excessive plank wear and, potentially, disqualification. 

Addressing the theory ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix, Leclerc opted against commenting on the Briton's theory, instead stressing the complexity of Ferrari's current issue.

"I'm not even going to begin to comment, I don't really mind about what George said after the race," Leclerc told select media, including RacingNews365. "I think the situation is a lot more complex than what he portrayed. 

"But I'm not really going to comment too much, and I think, as we said, after Budapest, we are not going to go into the details of exactly what happened, etc. 

"It's something that we are trying to fix and that we are working towards. But the only thing I can say is that it's a lot more [complex than that]."

Unfortunately, Ferrari has been unable to solve the unnamed problem ahead of F1's trip to Zandvoort, with Leclerc confirming it could cause further difficulties. 

"Yeah, I think [the problem] will be around still," confirmed Leclerc. "But we are trying to fix them and to deal with them in a different manner."