Charles Leclerc demonstrated his character by looking beyond his own disappointment to congratulate teammate Lewis Hamilton after Hamilton secured Ferrari's first Grand Prix victory since 2024 at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. The British driver delivered a stellar performance in the searing Spanish sunshine, finding supreme pace to win convincingly.
Leclerc's Difficult Weekend
For Leclerc, the weekend was another chapter in a frustrating recent run. After braking issues in Montreal and a crash in Monaco, he suffered another setback in qualifying when he damaged his car, leaving him 10th on the grid while Hamilton secured a front-row start.
During the race, Leclerc made progress but with four laps remaining, he lost power steering and went off track. He managed to return to the pit lane, but Ferrari retired the car, leaving him pointless once again.
Speaking to reporters, Leclerc explained: "I had a brake-by-wire failure and I had no power steering anymore into the corner. There was no power steering suddenly and that was the end of my race."
Leclerc Praises Hamilton
Despite his own disappointment, Leclerc was effusive in his praise for Hamilton, who now leads him by 40 points in the drivers' championship. When asked if he took pride in helping the team to its first win of the year, Leclerc said: "I don't want to take any credit for today's race, I don't think I had a role in it at all.
"I think Lewis and the team have done a good job and they eventually got the win all by themselves. Lewis won by an incredible margin, about 20 seconds, and he's been incredible in the last few weekends. He's been really on it and he deserves all of this. It's up to me to up my game, find the confidence in this car and put everything together to hopefully, with a clean weekend, fight for the podium."
Hamilton's Emotional Victory
For Hamilton, aged 41, the win was deeply emotional. He described it as "the first step in our story" and struggled to find words to express his feelings.
"I think it will take me some days. I will look back at this and wish I had the right words, but how do you find the right words to express an emotion that is beyond your wildest dreams?" Hamilton said. "I feel a lot of gratitude and pride in the people I work with. Seeing them sing the national anthem today was an incredible feeling, just the best. And being in a red suit standing in front of that crowd singing the national anthem, it was amazing to witness the joy in their eyes. I think this is the first step of our story."
