Leclerc insists Ferrari progress not his doing

Charles Leclerc has insisted that Ferrari is the most "improved" team this season, and that the progress is entirely down to the team rather than himself and Carlos Sainz. 

Despite both Sainz and Leclerc having retired in the recent Canadian Grand Prix, Ferrari has enjoyed an impressive start to the season. 

Both Leclerc and Sainz have already won one race each in 2024, raising speculation that a championship fight could possibly be on the cards. 

The SF24 has worked at almost every circuit this year baring the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, with consistency suddenly becoming a real strength of Ferrari's. 

Whilst Leclerc believes he improves every season, he stresses that the progress made by the Maranello-based outfit is down to the team.

"I think as a driver from one season to the other, you always improve," Leclerc told select media including RacingNews365, ahead of the Canadian GP.

"However, when you look at the step we've done, this is a lot more down to the team and to the car, as drivers you cannot do such a step. 

"Or that probably means that we're driving really bad last year but no, it's mostly down to the car and to the hard work we've done as a team. 

Must 'keep pushing'

Ferrari's biggest issues in 2023 were its strategies, tyre wear and driver errors, three areas that have clearly been addressed. 

Team principal Frederic Vasseur has done a phenomenal job in his second year leading the Italian manufacturer, with last winter having been his first in full with Ferrari.

A key improvement in Leclerc's eyes is that Ferrari's 2024 car is easy to drive, giving himself more confidence when behind the wheel.

"I think we've had a really good approach in the last seven to eight months in order to be very quick in addressing the issues that we had on the car, and and that's why we are the team that have improved the most in those in this period," added Leclerc.  

"So we need to keep focusing on ourselves, not look at others and keep pushing to optimise every single details.

"But definitely the biggest difference from last year to this year is the car being a lot more drivable, faster and as a driver is just a continuous improvement."