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The upcoming British Grand Prix at Silverstone carries special significance for Charles Leclerc, marking ten years since his first public appearance in Formula 1 as a Friday test driver for Haas, thanks to his association with Ferrari. That debut was the first of four test outings with the American-owned team in that season. In 2017, he took on a similar role with Sauber, a Ferrari customer outfit, while also clinching the Formula 2 championship. His success earned him a full-time race seat with the Swiss team in 2018, followed by a promotion to the factory Ferrari squad the next year.

Since then, Leclerc has consistently been among the frontrunners—at least when his machinery has permitted—as evidenced by his 27 pole positions. However, with only eight race victories to his name, it’s clear that luck has not always been on his side come race day. This season has been particularly challenging, with teammate Lewis Hamilton generally holding the upper hand in recent rounds. Leclerc struggled with the SF-26’s braking system in both Canada and Monaco, the latter resulting in a crash. After switching to Hamilton’s setup for Barcelona, he felt more at ease but was unable to match his teammate’s pace in the race and eventually retired late due to a hydraulic issue.

Despite a run of misfortune, Leclerc arrived in Austria last weekend with renewed optimism, determined to rediscover his form. “I think the last few races haven't been great,” Leclerc admitted on Thursday. “Looking at it objectively, Monaco and Spain were much worse than they should have been on paper. We’ve had two technical issues in a row, which cost us a lot of points. Also, I haven’t felt as comfortable in the car as I did earlier this season. But in Barcelona, I found that feeling again, which was positive. In Monaco and Canada, it was more difficult due to other factors.”

He expressed confidence in his ability to bounce back. “I’m not too worried about the pace itself; I just want to put together a complete weekend with the team and get back to where we should be,” he said. “It’s been too long with one thing or another stopping us from performing properly on Sunday.”

In Austria, Leclerc initially showed signs of improvement, qualifying second, just ahead of Hamilton. However, his race quickly unraveled as he lost ground to both his teammate and Max Verstappen. On a day when the SF-26 struggled with tire degradation, Leclerc slipped to eighth place, finishing as the last driver among the top four teams. Hamilton also battled tire wear and grip issues but still managed to finish three positions and nearly 20 seconds ahead.

“It was an incredibly tough race—very low grip overall,” Leclerc told Road & Track when describing his Sunday. “We struggled to keep the car and the tires, especially the rears, in the right operating window. I’ve been working very hard in recent weeks because every weekend there’s been something holding us back, whether on Saturday or Sunday. Right now, there’s always a reason for the struggle, which tells me I still don’t have a clear understanding of what I need from this car. I’ve got to figure that out.”

Leclerc also dismissed the idea that he had closed the gap to Hamilton in Austria. “That’s a stretch,” he said. “I struggled quite a lot today. Lewis got a good start and track position, which helped him early on. But even when we were running in clean air, he still had better pace than I did.”

From an outside perspective, it’s hard to grasp why a car that performed so well in Barcelona could be so unpredictable just two weeks later. “It’s difficult for us to understand too,” Leclerc admitted. “On Saturday, with low fuel, the car felt really good—the front end was strong, and I liked that much better than how it behaved in the race. The front stayed strong, but I had no rear grip. It’s a balance that’s particularly tricky to find on this car.”

“Overall, it’s tough to make sense of the competitive order this season,” he added. “It swings from one extreme to another. A team that struggles massively one weekend can be very strong the next. Comparing Barcelona to here, there’s been a big shift in performance for us.”

Having outperformed Hamilton for most of last year, it must be difficult for Leclerc to see the seven-time World Champion gaining momentum and commanding influence within the team. Hamilton has benefited from a car that he helped develop this year, unlike the SF-25 he inherited last season.

To his credit, Leclerc rejected the notion that the car’s setup, which suits Hamilton’s driving style, doesn’t work for him. “I honestly don’t think that’s true,” he said in Austria. “It’s not that I’m uncomfortable with this year’s car. It’s just that in Montreal and Monaco, we faced some very tricky issues that made me lose a bit of confidence. But it’s not a problem with the car itself.”

“Last year, I had a very strong season, and we worked together as a team on this project. It’s not a case of going in completely different directions. As I’ve said before, these cars are very different, but we now have enough flexibility in the setup to tailor the car to our driving preferences.”

These are undoubtedly challenging times for Leclerc. Though his position isn’t under threat—he recently signed a contract extension that many drivers would envy—at 28 years old and in his eighth season with Ferrari, he is eager to achieve much more.