The ballooning weight of current-era F1 cars has become increasingly unpopular with drivers and teams, with this year's minimum weight of 798kg well over 200kg higher compared to cars from 15 years ago.
It is one of the key aspects FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem wants to tackle for the next 2026 regulations cycle, even though most teams reckon F1 would do well to keep car weight on a similar level following the proposed 50/50 split between electric power and power from the V6 engines, which will require heavier batteries.
Ferrari's Leclerc has joined his peers in wishing the weight of the cars can be brought down, but also hopes the 2023-era's "very impressive" downforce levels can be maintained.
"I arrived in 2018 and the cars were already quite heavy," Leclerc told Autosport in an exclusive interview.
"I drove a 2004 car in Abu Dhabi with 50 kilos of fuel, but you can definitely feel the difference with today's car. I don't like heavy cars. I think for the agility of the car and for also the slow speed corners, now you can really feel the weight.
"But I have to say that what we are experiencing in medium to high speed with the downforce we have today is incredible compared to 12 or 13 years ago, and this is very impressive.
"So, I think it's a balance. I wouldn't want to go higher than the weight we have now, that's for sure. But also going very light compromises also the aero that we have because the car is huge, and that produces also a lot more aero compared to 12 years ago."
Source: Autosport