Leclerc adopts Hamilton brake setup after Monaco fallout

Ferrari's Monaco brake controversy ends in Barcelona: Leclerc adopts Hamilton's Carbone Industrie discs after a crash-out and a public row with Brembo.

Charles Leclerc will switch to Lewis Hamilton's brake configuration in Barcelona after the brake controversy that overshadowed Ferrari's Monaco weekend.

Eagle-eyed observers spotted Carbone Industrie brake discs on Leclerc's car in the Barcelona garage, with Italy's La Repubblica confirming the Monegasque will now run the same combination as his teammate.

"Charles Leclerc, like Lewis Hamilton, will use Carbone Industrie discs and Brembo calipers, after the brake problems he complained about in Monte Carlo," the newspaper reported.

The move follows Leclerc's furious reaction after crashing out of a podium position in Monaco, when he insisted: "I'm not going to take the f***ing blame."

The comments triggered a rare public response from Brembo, which said it was "very surprised" by Leclerc's criticism and called for a full technical analysis before conclusions were drawn.

Hamilton's earlier switch

Hamilton revealed in Barcelona that he had already abandoned Ferrari's previous brake setup earlier this season.

"I changed my brakes in Japan. It was something I had asked for a long time ago," the seven-time world champion told Sky Italia.

"Both Leclerc and I tested the option I'm racing with, and in the end he didn't want it straight away, so we preferred to split our efforts with two solutions.

"Charles chose his own path and now he's changed his mind, but it makes no difference to me. My goal is to provide input that improves the results of the entire team, and Charles is part of that."

Leclerc was notably more restrained when facing questions in Barcelona.

"I don't want to talk about it too much," he said.

"I rarely speak so quickly about a problem, but when I do, it's after first examining the facts. And I've done that, so there's not much to add."

"I don't expect any revolutionary changes, but I do expect the car to become easier to control in some cases. Overall, I need stability in the car's handling. That's all I need."

He also admitted the team's experiment with different brake setups had become increasingly difficult for him.

"Some time ago, the team and I decided to run cars with different brake configurations, and the last two weekends have presented me with more challenges than I initially anticipated.

"For now, we'll be moving in the same direction as Lewis."

Ferrari's brake realignment

Ferrari hopes the switch can help its homegrown star regain momentum after Hamilton has emerged as the team's stronger performer in recent races.

The Briton says part of the improvement is down to having greater influence over the development direction of the 2026 Ferrari.

"I think I've gone from a season where I was driving a car I inherited, on which I had no input, to a car where I had a say," Hamilton said.

"There were elements I strongly requested, and the team listened, which makes me really happy."

The 41-year-old also praised team boss Frederic Vasseur.

"Fred has been really fantastic in working with me and helping me make certain changes I wanted, and that in a way unlocks you to get up and do what you do best."

Hamilton even suggested Ferrari is beginning to rediscover its innovative edge.

"Last year I was asking myself, and the team, where our innovations were," he said. "Ferrari should be an innovator, it should be the team that all the other teams try to follow, and this year you see us coming up with innovative things that others have followed."

"There are many more innovations coming, which is really exciting."

Charles Leclerc at a glance

See also: 2026 F1 season on F1-Fansite.

Related: Leclerc brake row runs deeper than Brembo blame

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Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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