Leclerc: “I had to keep the lead of the race at the start”

Charles Leclerc had to settle for the last step of the podium at the Russian GP after a missed race for the Team Ferrari.

While the Italian team dominated the race, internal radio discussions focused on overtaking Sebastian Vettel who had taken the lead at the expense of the pole sitter. The latter asked at his stand that the German give him the lead, the strategy having been not to attack at the start to protect himself from the Mercedes de Lewis Hamilton et Valtteri Bottas.

“I will always trust the team. The tactic was to give Seb a slipstream at the start until the first corner, but I had to keep the lead of the race and I didn't quite understand the situation. I need to discuss this with the team”, explained Charles Leclerc.

“The term disobey is a bit strong, it’s a problem of interpretation, said Team Principal Mattia Binotto. This GP is a failure because we had everything to win. Both drivers will have their chances. Seb was very fast in the race and Charles was trying to keep up the pace while trying to defend against Hamilton. »

Sebastian Vettel's retirement due to engine problems finally allowed the Mercedes to take the lead and sign the double with the championship leader's victory.

“We had regular performances. I'm happy to be on the podium even if it's unfortunate that a car is missing. Mercedes are still very fast. We must continue to work to understand the facts of racing and improve. We had the level to beat Valtteri, but I overheated my tires as soon as I got within half a second.", added the Monegasque.

In 3rd place in the championship, Charles Leclerc is 87 points behind Lewis Hamilton, 3 units ahead of Max Verstappen (Red Bull).

Discover the analysis of the Russian GP carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2236 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from this Wednesday on newsstands.