6-time F1 race winner says Ferrari’s biggest problem is their own brand name

Former Williams F1 driver Ricciardo Patrese claimed that Ferrari's biggest problem was their brand name, amidst the Italian team's struggle at the recently concluded 2025 Singapore Grand Prix. The Maranello-based outfit has been struggling of late with its on-track performances and has yet to claim a podium since the start of the second half of the season.

The Prancing Horses were left ruining their car troubles at the iconic street race last weekend as both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were struck by brake issues with destroyed their chances of making any meaningful progress.

Ever since the start of the 2025 season, Ferrari have found themselves tackling multiple issues on their SF25, which had a radically different design philosophy compared to their 2024 Challenger.

In his interview with Escapist Magazine, Patrese, who won six races in the sport while racing for teams like Williams, Brabham, and Arrows in the 80s and 90s, reflected on the Italian team's current issues and pointed out:

"Ferrari is already focusing on 2026, yes, but the problem is that they are Ferrari. There is no one with the position Adrian Newey had at Red Bull or Andrea Stella has at McLaren. We need a technical totem, a point of reference."

While the iconic F1 team tried to sign Adrian Newey last year after his Red Bull exit, Andrea Stella used to be an integral part of Ferrari, and his move as team principal of McLaren propelled the fortunes of the Woking-based out in the past couple of years.

Charles Leclerc gives his resigned outlook on Ferrari's chances in 2025

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc stated that he believed that, as a team, they do not have the car to fight against their rivals at the front after Red Bull and Mercedes made a jump in the last couple of races.

Speaking with Autosport, the eight-time F1 race winner reflected on the SF-25's current potential and said:

“Unfortunately, we don't have the race car to fight with the guys in front. McLaren has always had the same gap on us compared to the beginning of the year. Red Bull did a step from Monza and had the same level as McLaren. Mercedes now is at the same level of McLaren and Red Bull, and then there's us.

“It's not easy, obviously, because you want to fight for better positions. But at the moment, it just feels like we're kind of passengers to the car and we cannot extract much more.”

The Italian team now finds itself 27 points behind Mercedes in the Constructors' Championship in P3, with Red Bull just eight points behind them in P4 as the 2025 season comes to a close in the next two months.

Edited by Devang Chauhan