MOTOR RACING: Leclerc to follow Hamilton's brake switch after Monaco crash

Charles Leclerc will follow Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton's lead and switch brake disc supplier for this weekend's Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix after the Briton's recent run of success and his own crash in Monaco last Sunday.

Seven-time world champion Hamilton has finished runner-up in the last two races and is now second in the Formula One championship, 66 points behind Mercedes' runaway leader Kimi Antonelli.

Leclerc is fourth overall, 15 points behind Hamilton.

Hamilton switched from Ferrari's long-time supplier Brembo to Carbon Industrie discs at the Japanese Grand Prix and told reporters at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya that it was one of several changes he had sought after joining from Mercedes last season.

"There's elements of the car that I'd asked for, and the team listened," he said.

"There are many elements that just wouldn't work for me with the setup that we had here and it's taken a long time to get those things changed.

"I changed my brakes in Japan... Both of us tested the option that I'm racing, and Charles didn't want it in the end. He chose the one of his own, and now he's changed his mind," added the Briton.

Leclerc said after he crashed out of his home race last Sunday that he felt his car was "borderline dangerous".

Brembo said in a statement after Monaco that it was "really surprised" by Leclerc's comments and pointed out the Italian company had supplied Ferrari with brake systems for more than 50 years.

"I think it's clear now that we are probably going to change a little bit the configuration," Leclerc told reporters in Spain, without commenting on the Brembo statement or providing details. "How much it will change, I still have to test it and to see...I don't expect a revolution.

"It was a decision that we made as a team to have the cars split (on brake suppliers). The last two weekends have been more difficult than what I initially anticipated. Now we're going in the direction of Lewis."

Former F1 designer Gary Anderson said drivers responded differently to the brakes according to their styles and what suited some might not be the same for others.

"From my point of view, Brembo should suit Leclerc’s driving style and CI should suit Hamilton's," he told www.the-race.com.

-Reporting by Alan Baldwin; Editing by Hugh Lawson/Reuters