It has been a season to forget for Ferrari.

After 13 podium finishes for Charles Leclerc in 2024 and signing Lewis Hamilton to a multi-year deal, fans certainly anticipated even more dominance headed into 2025.

However, this season tells a different tale. Both drivers have yet to secure a Grand Prix win, and Ferrari has now dropped to fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship after São Paulo. If these standings hold, it would undoubtedly be considered a failure for the team.

To make matters worse, recently, Ferrari’s president, John Elkann, has publicly pointed the finger at his drivers, stating:

“If we look at our engineers, there’s no doubt that the car has improved.

“If we look at the rest, it is not up to par.

“And surely we have drivers for whom it is important that they focus on driving and talk less, because we still have important races ahead of us and getting second place is not impossible.”

So is Elkann right to say Hamilton and Leclerc are responsible for Ferrari’s poor showing, or are there organizational factors at play? Here’s where the Italian team has gone wrong this season.

Team Dynamics

Based on Elkann’s comments, it’s clear there is tension within the team. However, Ferrari’s drivers have also alluded to problems in the opposite direction.

Following the Hungarian Grand Prix in August, both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc cited internal factors that impacted performance over the weekend. Hamilton noted “a lot going on in the background” in his post-race interviews. While this comment doesn’t directly call out personnel issues, Leclerc very candidly shared his opinions over the radio, stating:

“This is so incredibly frustrating. We’ve lost all competitiveness. You just have to listen to me. I would have found a different way of managing these issues. Now it’s just undrivable. It’s a miracle if we finish on the podium.”

Yikes. While it may be possible to improve their position, comments like these will certainly leave fans wondering what exactly is going on within this team. Understandably, the whole organization is feeling the pressure, but they need to figure something out quickly if they want to finish better than fourth in the standings.

It’s also no secret that this has been a rough season for Lewis Hamilton, and something that neither he nor the Ferrari organization would have anticipated to this level. Hamilton has had zero podium finishes this year, a remarkable statistic for anyone familiar with his legendary status in the sport.

Whether it’s due to adjusting to the car or just a one-off bad season, the fact is that Hamilton has lagged behind Leclerc all season, only contributing 40% of Ferrari’s total points. Such a quick decline may have rattled both the driver and his team.

Simply put, Hamilton’s performance must turn around if Ferrari wants to see improvement heading into 2026 – something that Hamilton and Elkann would likely agree on.

Poor Car Performance

While Elkann claims that the car has improved, this does not erase the team’s struggles with car performance for much of the season.

Despite finishing the previous season on a relatively high note, Ferrari opted for major upgrades to their car, rather than building on their 2024 iteration. Unfortunately, this backfired on them in a major way.

During the second race weekend of the season, both drivers were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix. Leclerc’s car was underweight, and Hamilton’s car was in breach of technical regulations due to a thin skid block. A double disqualification so early in the season triggered a major loss of performance, and Ferrari has been unsuccessfully playing catch-up ever since.

Instead of improving performance, these modifications have plagued them with ongoing ride height issues. Having to regularly re-adjust to the car after changes has certainly impacted both drivers. Lewis Hamilton, in particular, has repeatedly voiced his struggles adapting to the car this season.

Although improvements have been made, the car is far from perfect. With new regulations on the horizon, Ferrari is also unlikely to spend any more of their budget on meaningful upgrades to their 2025 car. Ferrari will have to do the best with what they have to finish out the season and hope for a significant turnaround in next year’s development.

Race Strategy

Questionable race strategy is a common source of misery amongst Ferrari fans. In recent years, there have been several controversial decisions that have ruined race weekends for the team. Who could forget that Monaco pit stop in 2022?

The 2025 season has also had its share of poor race strategy, from tyre choices, disagreements on team orders, misjudging weather conditions, and plain old driver mistakes. Even during moments where the car is performing, Ferrari has not taken proper advantage of opportunities to score some much-needed points.

An example of this was Ferrari’s strategy at the Miami Grand Prix. Following a disappointing qualifying, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton found themselves in P8 and P12, respectively. As the race progressed, Hamilton climbed up the order to P8, just behind Leclerc. With Hamilton on medium tyres and Leclerc on hards, Hamilton suggested he move ahead to try and overtake the Mercedes driver, Kimi Antonelli. Ferrari took some time to make the decision, with Hamilton getting increasingly frustrated over the radio, stating that keeping him behind was poor teamwork.

Hamilton was eventually permitted to pass after several laps, but was unsuccessful in catching Antonelli, and Ferrari reversed the team order decision. Ultimately, the drivers finished in P7 and P8, almost a full minute behind the race leader, Oscar Piastri.

Whatever the reason behind the decision-making, Ferrari’s choices resulted in heated tempers, time lost during the race, and some uncomfortable post-race interviews – all things that don’t help with winning championships.

What’s next for Ferrari?

Wherever the blame truly lies, the entire organization will need to come together quickly if Ferrari has any hope of salvaging their season. However, with 2026 on the horizon, their only option may be to hope for better results next year.