Charles Leclerc admits copying F1 team-mate Lewis Hamilton before Ferrari U-turn

Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, China, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

Ferrari

Charles Leclerc admits copying Lewis Hamilton before Ferrari F1 U-turn

Lewis Hamilton leads Charles Leclerc by 31 points in the drivers' championship

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 31 July 2026 09:42

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Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari F1 team-mate Charles Leclerc has admitted he tried to copy the seven-time champion in order to turn his 2026 form around, but that it didn't work.

Having the most successful driver in F1 history as your team-mate surely has its perks, with Leclerc being able to learn off Hamilton since the 41-year-old joined the team back in 2025.

Leclerc is hoping to become a champion himself one day, and managed to end his 21-month wait for a grand prix victory at the British Grand Prix earlier this month. But it hasn't all been plain sailing for the Monegasque driver in 2026.

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After vastly outperforming Hamilton in 2025 when he finished 86 points ahead of his team-mate in the drivers' championship, Leclerc struggled to cope with the new regulations, and had to watch on as Hamilton claimed back-to-back second-place finishes in Canada and Monaco, before winning the Barcelona-Catalunya GP.

Leclerc has bounced back in recent weeks, however, claiming the win at Silverstone before a second-place finish in Belgium. He has finished above Hamilton in all of the last three grands prix, and is now just 31 points behind him in the drivers' championship.

How has Leclerc turned things around in 2026?

With Hamilton seemingly in the hunt for the drivers' championship whilst Leclerc tries to help Ferrari claim constructors' championship success, the Monegasque driver has been given the space to try and get used to the new regulations on his own terms.

He now seems to have found his rhythm, but has claimed that it is not a result of just copying what his seven-time champion team-mate has done.

Leclerc has revealed that he tried that, but it didn't yield success, forcing him to make a U-turn in his approach.

"I tried everything," Leclerc said in quotes reported by Gazzetta. "First following the approach chosen by Hamilton, who immediately felt more comfortable, only to realise that it didn’t work for me.

"In the end, by sticking to my own approach, I managed to turn things around."

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F1 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Charles Leclerc