How Charles Leclerc is discovering enjoyable in F1’s 2026 “chaos”

Charles Leclerc says he’s ‘finding the fun in a different way’ with Formula 1’s 2026-spec equipment.

The world championship has launched new chassis and engine laws for the upcoming season, which has drastically modified the required driving type – as racers flip to lift-and-coast in addition to downshifting so as to harvest and save power – and elevated the psychological workload behind the wheel.

F1’s new automobiles have obtained a blended reception at greatest, with Max Verstappen branding them “anti-racing” and “a bit more like Formula E on steroids”. Leclerc can’t assist however admit it: “It’s not the funniest automotive.

“I imply, it isn’t probably the most enjoyable I’ve had driving a automotive, however it’s the way in which it’s. And I discover the enjoyable otherwise.

“I feel the problem of actually growing this complete new system is, in itself, one thing that I’ve loved, and one thing that I discover very attention-grabbing. In that, I form of discover some enjoyable into simply experiencing various things, and issues that may haven’t labored previously.

“But now that it’s all different, it’s cool to be able to think a bit outside the box, and to try and find other ways in trying to maximise the performance of the car. But the actual pleasure of driving the car is different.”

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

Photo by: Ferrari

Pleasure-wise, the Ferrari driver has praised the lighter, nimbler automobiles, which higher go well with his most well-liked “oversteery” driving type; the lowered weight is the side he has been having fun with probably the most.

“The weight, you can definitely feel it,” Leclerc identified. “The car is a little bit more alive, and the balance, you can play with the car a lot more and you can have a very snappy rear. Last year, I remember, with the weight it was a little bit more difficult to manage that. I’ve always liked oversteery cars, but with these cars, I feel like you can go a bit more extreme with them.”

But this will likely be overshadowed by the substantial quantity of required power administration, which prompted the aforementioned feedback from Verstappen – and extra from different drivers.

“There’s a little bit less of attack, which is what I loved with previous F1 cars,” Leclerc acknowledged.

“As F1 drivers normally, you at all times need to adapt and to vary your driving type. This yr is extra of a change than we have been used to previously. The proportion of driving is a bit of bit much less. Now it is extra about eager about every thing else that you have to consider if you find yourself within the automotive to maximise all of the techniques round you. So you’ve got simply received to suppose actively much more in comparison with previously.

“We are all fighting to try and put the load more on the system rather than the driver. It’s different across the paddock for sure, and we’ve all had different approaches in… what I need as a driver and what I would prefer not to have my head on because it’s just too difficult to optimise as a human being, not having all the senses that the car might have. So it’s a balance, but it’s interesting because it’s a process we are definitely quite involved in.”

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images by way of Getty Images

As far as overtaking is anxious, Leclerc has joined the general consensus that it is likely to be trickier, as the ability unit’s Overtake Mode replaces DRS – however as Pierre Gasly identified, what was “seven tenths for free” will now come at a value energy-wise.

Asked by Motorsport if he had an opportunity to seek out out extra on overtaking throughout testing, Leclerc replied: “We’ve checked it and I kind of share what my colleagues have said. I find it, at the moment, extremely difficult to get any overtakes, but it might improve with time in how we manage this kind of situations – but it always comes with a price whenever you’ve got to overtake, and the price is a lot more costly than it was in the past. That’s why I think it’s very difficult to make an overtake and then pull away like it was the case last year. That’s tricky.”

All in all, Leclerc is brazenly anticipating havoc to be wrought – particularly initially of the race, because the removing of the MGU-H on the brand new energy items makes it trickier for drivers to find the right operational window at lights out.

“Yes, I expect some chaos,” he admitted. “As we have been simply saying, overtaking goes to be an enormous problem. I feel there are nonetheless many query marks. Yes, we attempt to simulate as many conditions as attainable, however nothing will simulate simply the unpredictability that you end up in when there is a race begin. You will not be anymore accountable for your line, of the way in which you drive, of your pace traces, as a result of you’re a bit in your enemy’s fingers, however it’s the identical for everyone.

“Again, there are lots of question marks, and I think the start is one of those as well. We are working a lot on that, just like everybody is, but it’s one of those very critical moments of a race, and there might be some surprising things in the first start of the season.”

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– The Motorsport.com Team