Charles Leclerc praises Ferrari’s good performance compared to Max Verstappen, but warns against ignoring McLaren when doing the math
“Third place was the best we could do,” says Charles Leclerc after the Formula 1 race in Miami. The Monegasque had finished third on the podium on Sunday, but had no chance against Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, which was also due to the unfavorable timing of the safety car
Leclerc had already come in for a tire change on lap 19, switching from medium to hard. And while Norris, for example, benefited from the safety car because he had not yet pitted, Leclerc did not benefit from the neutralization.
The Ferrari driver did not get to change tires again. “As a result, we had the oldest tires of everyone up front” – and no chance against Norris and Verstappen in front, Leclerc complains.
But why did Ferrari come in for a pit stop so early? Sergio Perez, who was behind the two Ferraris at the start of the race, had pitted even earlier and could have moved forward with an undercut, but according to team boss Frederic Vasseur, this was not a reaction to the Mexican.
“That was simply a global strategy to force everyone into the pits a little,” he says. “I think we were in good shape at that point. That was a good move,” said Vasseur.
A little bit of blue and 2 trophies to take back home
Miami, thank you pic.twitter.com/4O5ToiSBlC– Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) May 6, 2024
At least they had kept Perez at bay, who, unlike Leclerc, had returned to the track behind the two Mercedes and Yuki Tsunoda. However, it was not enough to overtake front runner Verstappen, who returned to the track ahead of Leclerc after his tire change.
Second place at least seemed possible for the Monegasque, but the safety car, which flushed Lando Norris to the front, ultimately helped the McLaren driver to take his first Formula 1 victory.
Comparison to Verstappen positive, but …
Leclerc, on the other hand, can take comfort from the fact that he looked pretty good compared to Verstappen at the weekend. Leclerc took second place in both qualifying sessions and finished just two seconds behind the otherwise dominant Dutchman. That could make you happy, right?
“If we compare ourselves with Max, then it was a positive weekend,” he nods. “But we can’t completely ignore Lando.”
After all, McLaren had brought an extensive upgrade package with them to Miami. Although it cannot be denied that the Briton benefited from the safety car in his victory, the McLaren’s pace was particularly evident in qualifying on mediums, where Norris was the fastest in the field.
“I remember one lap in SQ2 where I thought: ‘Okay, they’re extremely fast’,” said Leclerc. “And they were very, very strong today too. “
Updates will decide
This means that McLaren could be a big threat to Ferrari if the new package is as big a leap as it looks. The Scuderia will have to follow suit
Leclerc knows this too: “I’ve often said that upgrades will be important this season,” he emphasizes. He promises: “Ours is coming soon, and that will define the rest of the season a little bit.”
“We have to work hard and hopefully the upgrades will be as good as theirs and help us make a significant step forward. “
