Charles Leclerc may have celebrated a podium finish at the 2026 Australian Grand Prix, but the Ferrari driver also found himself approaching an unwanted milestone in Formula 1 history.
According to statistics shared by Daniel Valente of theScore, Leclerc is on track to become the only driver in F1 history to compete in more than 150 races with a single team without delivering them a World Drivers’ Championship.
The Monegasque driver reached 150 races with Ferrari during the Melbourne weekend, putting him alongside several notable names who spent long periods with one team. Lewis Hamilton raced 246 times with Mercedes, Max Verstappen 210 with Red Bull, and Michael Schumacher 180 with Ferrari, all delivering drivers’ titles during their runs.
Mark Sutton – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images
Leclerc, however, has yet to secure the championship with Ferrari despite joining the team in 2019 and becoming its long-term project driver.
Charles Leclerc Reflects After Australian GP Podium
The Ferrari driver still delivered a strong performance in Melbourne, finishing third behind Mercedes drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli after a competitive race at Albert Park. Speaking after the race, Leclerc said he enjoyed the “fun first part of the race,” before adding that “P3 is the best we could do today.”
“It looked like Mercedes maybe had a bit more pace than us today, but maybe not as much as what we saw yesterday, so that’s a good thing. I don’t think we would have won,” the 28-year-old continued, acknowledging that Mercedes appeared to have the stronger package in Melbourne.
Joe Portlock/Getty Images
Despite the podium finish, Leclerc admitted his performance across the race was not ideal and said the car felt stranger than usual. “Today I was quite surprised that we were on as far as what we expected before, but on my side, it’s been quite a poor race in terms of performance. I was quite slow all race long. We’ve got to look at that.”
“The car felt very strange in general, so I don’t think I was in the right window of the setup.”
Ferrari Star Looks Ahead
While the statistics surrounding Leclerc’s Ferrari tenure highlight the difficulty of delivering a championship with the Scuderia, the driver remains confident that the team can close the gap during the 2026 season.
Alastair Staley/LAT Images via Getty Images
Leclerc believes Ferrari can improve as the season progresses, “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but it’s only the first race, and it’s going to be a championship won with development.”
“We’ve got plenty coming. I’m sure all the others do too, but hopefully we are on the better side of things. Lots of work ahead anyway.”
For now, the 2026 Australian Grand Prix provided both encouragement and frustration for Ferrari: a podium finish to open the season, but also another reminder that the championship challenge still has work ahead.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 8, 2026, where it first appeared in the Racing section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
