MPH: The F1 force that could split Leclerc & Ferrari — and even McLaren

In F1, competitive pressure ruptures everything eventually. Even the most harmonious relationships cannot withstand failure indefinitely. Failure has different definitions according to expectations, of course. Success for Racing Bulls would be fifth place in the constructors’ championship this year. Such a result would be catastrophic for Ferrari or Red Bull.

But success applies pressure too, and it’s just as capable of rupturing relationships as failure. Back in the late 80s, Ayrton Senna came to McLaren, the place Alain Prost had made his own since arriving there in ’84. It was difficult to think of a more harmonious relationship between a team and a driver as that between Prost and McLaren.

But by sheer scintillating performance and ruthless ambition, Senna eased him out. McLaren became a place Prost no longer wanted to be. Senna and McLaren went on to further incredible success together after Prost’s departure and Senna’s pay demands rose steeply as success accrued. He was the fastest man in the world, so McLaren boss Ron Dennis kept paying, albeit increasingly reluctantly.

Eventually, McLaren was outgunned by the technology leaps made by Williams in the early 90s. Dennis later attributed this to the lack of investment he’d made because of meeting Senna’s pay demands. When Senna realised McLaren was no longer keeping up, he left for Williams. Success had ruptured their partnership just as surely as Prost’s earlier success had attracted the force which would end his relationship with the team. Nothing stays in stasis. Fortunes are always moving one way or the other. Staying on top is only ever about how long you can surf the wave. Eventually, you get dunked.

Expectation is always highest at Ferrari and the pressure of both success and failure has been very evident there. The success steamroller of the Schumacher-era Ferrari was interrupted by a combination of fatigue and Luca di Montezemolo’s desire for a more Italian team. Since Kimi Räikkönen‘s 2007 title, the constant ‘almost but not quite’ outcomes have extracted a cost of groundhog day cycles of dismissals and resignations.

Fernando Alonso almost won a title in his first year at Ferrari. Almost. He almost won again two years later. But the pressure of not delivering the crown turned a niggle between him and the team into a rupture. His replacement Sebastian Vettel would experience much the same thing.

How long can Charles Leclerc – winning races there for seven years but never a title contender – keep the faith? Maybe the outright fastest driver on the grid, capable of outrageously flattering the car, he is giving his peak performance years to an organisation that’s not quite there. How long before the itch to move has to be scratched?