While Verstappen has raged against how bad he finds the regulations, this on top of his general fury at the limitations of the Red Bull\u2019s front end, Leclerc has applied himself and even found an area of advantage to offset the disadvantage the new regs have imposed upon them both.<\/p>\n
![\"Arvid](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Arvid-Lindblad-leads-Max-Verstappen-in-the-2026-F1-Japanese-Grand-Prix-800x450.jpg\"\/)
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Max (left) in the midfield: his Red Bull doesn\u2019t offer the traits he wants<\/p>\n
\n Red Bull\n <\/p>\n
Rather like at the beginning of 2022 and \u201923, the low-speed understeer traits of the Red Bull are placing a false ceiling upon Verstappen\u2019s ability to squeeze something special from himself. His ability to pivot the car around the outer-front tyre to get quick rotation into the corner but without then losing more lap time through rear scrubbing than he\u2019s found from the quick rotation is legendary. It requires fantastic feel to keep the reference of that balancing point and the pointier the car is, the bigger will be the gap between him and an ordinary driver. But bring the car\u2019s front end responsiveness down and his window of differentiation becomes much smaller and can even disappear.<\/p>\n
That current trait of the Red Bull is not directly to do with the new regulations, but when it comes on top of the way the energy split demands can actually punish a driver able to get earlier on the throttle \u2013 which is what Verstappen\u2019s technique allows \u2013 his frustration is all too easy to imagine. Because not only is he struggling to get the car to respond to how he wants to drive, but even when he can manage to do it, he just uses up more battery energy and is therefore penalised on the straight.<\/p>\n
Leclerc\u2019s the master of deployment<\/p>\n
Now compound that with the Red Bull\u2019s somewhat clunky and inconsistent power unit delivery in these early races and we have the sport\u2019s number one driver talking about leaving at the end of the season such is his level of disenchantment. He\u2019s broken records he never dreamed of breaking and now everything seems to be conspiring to make it a slog. He talks of how even if the car becomes competitive and he\u2019s winning again, he cannot imagine enjoying racing in this way.<\/p>\n
Contrast that with Leclerc \u2013 a driver who has every reason to believe he could have been going toe-to-toe with Verstappen during Max\u2019s title years if only he\u2019d had equal machinery \u2013 without the same career achievements and with a lot still to prove. Yes, he hates the way his extraordinary ability to sit the outer rear tyre on the very edge without quite going over it has been penalised by the energy demands. He hates the way that the sort of virtuosity which has many times allowed him to pull something special out the bag on his final Q3 run now actually mitigates against him through a software algorithm which needs identical repeatability. But the frustration doesn\u2019t seem so all-consuming and the ambition is still very evident. He\u2019s apparently even drawn up a team of his own software experts to help him understand how best to optimise the systems in every situation. He\u2019s actually doubled down in his efforts despite not enjoying the driving demands. If there is an advantage to be found over others via this better understanding, then he wants it.<\/p>\n
![\"Charles](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Charles-Leclerc-leads-Max-Verstappen-in-the-2026-F1-Japanese-Grand-Prix-800x450.jpg\"\/)
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Leclerc keeps Russell at bay in Japan<\/p>\n
\n Grand Prix Photo\n <\/p>\n
What we have seen so far in Leclerc\u2019s races is an incredibly adept use of the various boost and overtake modes to keep himself in contention, regularly frustrating George Russell<\/a>\u2019s faster Mercedes<\/a>. This is probably also to do with the Ferrari\u2019s small turbo\/shorter gearing being more raceable in traffic, but Leclerc has absolutely maximised the trait. Even when he lacked outright pace on his bogey circuit of Shanghai \u2013 where, just like last year, he was slower than team-mate Lewis Hamilton<\/a> \u2013 he was able to stay in play by how well thought-out his use of the battery was. He\u2019s the master of deployment.<\/p>\n Probably not the title he\u2019d choose to have after eight years in cars not quite good enough for a championship challenge. But if he ever gets a car to match his ability, his path to that title may be eased by Verstappen no longer being on the grid.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Ask Mark<\/p>\n Put your questions to Motor Sport\u2019s grand prix editor, who answers a selection each week in the Motor Sport F1 Show podcast<\/a><\/p>\n