There were disagreements

Ferrari takes action! Out for Leclerc confidant

Charles Leclerc will continue with a new race engineer.(Bild: AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Chris Graythen)

Ferrari has parted company with Xavier Marcos, Charles Leclerc's race engineer. This was the racing team's reaction to the unsatisfactory season so far. In addition, there had reportedly been disagreements between the driver and engineer for some time. A suitable replacement has already been found. 

Leclerc and Marcos had been a team since 2019. However, this collaboration came to an abrupt end after disagreements and a mixed start to the season for the Monegasque. As Ferrari announced, Marcos will be released from his previous role and devote himself to "other important programs in the company in the future".

Charles Leclerc(Bild: APA/AFP/Paul Crock)

Driver and race engineer repeatedly came to blows over the course of the season. There were several disagreements about race strategy, for example. An episode that took place at the Chinese Grand Prix is an example of this. Marcos repeatedly discussed a "horizontal line" with Leclerc when cornering. However, the Monegasque did not understand what his confidant was trying to tell him. 

Successor only in office for a short time?
Marcos will be replaced by the current performance engineer Bryan Bozzi at the home race in Imola. This was officially announced by the racing team. How long he will remain in this role is still unclear and is probably also linked to another personnel decision.

New signing Lewis Hamilton will probably bring his race engineer Peter Bonnington with him to Ferrari. In this case, Riccardo Adami, who is currently responsible for Carlos Sainz, would probably have to make way for him. However, if the liaison between Leclerc and Bozzi does not work out, Adami could also switch to the Monegasque.