For Leclerc, "the opportunity has not been fully optimized" in China

Second complicated weekend for Charles Leclerc in China. The Monegasque crossed the checkered flag in fifth position before being disqualified by the FIA ​​due to failure to comply with the minimum weight of his car. After a collision on the first lap with his own teammate, the driver Ferrari had to deal with a damaged front wing and a significant loss of downforce.

“It’s a shame it fell on Lewis. But honestly, from my side, I was trying to position myself for Turn 3. Lewis was on the outside, I thought he was holding the position so I didn’t expect him to come back to the inside, he explained on Canal +. He didn't see that I was there, I didn't imagine that he was going to come back, in short we touched each other. It's never what you want between teammates, but unfortunately we didn't understand what was everyone's intention and that's how it is." 

Leclerc was able to limit the damage, however, bringing his Ferrari back to fifth position. A fine performance for a loss of “30 and 40 points of aero, which is huge”, according to his team's estimates. "What is encouraging is that we managed to achieve this performance despite the problem with the front wing, analyzed No. 16. But hey, it's not a completely optimized opportunity." This wasn't enough to fight for the podium, given that Ferrari decided not to replace the nose of its car during the race. The problem: the SF-25 showed a final weight of 799 kg, instead of the minimum of 800 kg, during the final stage of the weigh-in. The broken wing was replaced during this check and does not appear to be the cause of this missing kilo.

Focus on qualifications

The Ferraris have struggled to be competitive since qualifying, which inevitably complicates the races. This very start of the season is difficult, Leclerc said. There are only two races done, but it's complicated, especially since on the qualifying lap, we are below the expected performances." Victory in the Sprint of Lewis Hamilton has nevertheless shown the potential of the SF-25. "We saw it with Lewis yesterday during the Sprint, when you start in front, the performance is there in the race, he advanced. But when you start 5th and 6th, with four cars in front, it's much more complicated to manage."

Determined to get the Scuderia back on track, Leclerc knows where to focus his efforts: "We'll have to work on qualifying, which was our strong point for years. Unfortunately, over the past year and a half, we've lost track a bit."  A clear signal sent to his team: if the Maranello team wants to hope to compete at the front, it must regain its ability to shine on Saturdays... And review its calculations regarding the loss of consumables to avoid being disqualified at the end of a Grand Prix.

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