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Verstappen triumphs at Castellet, Leclerc finishes in the background and loses big

Max Verstappen took advantage of Charles Leclerc's accident to win the French Grand Prix, his 7th victory of the season. In the championship, the Dutchman carried out the perfect operation since he pushed the Monegasque to 63 points from now on.

Published on 24/07/2022 à 16:35

Gonzalo Forbes

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Verstappen triumphs at Castellet, Leclerc finishes in the background and loses big

Seventh victory of the season for Max Verstappen, winner of the French Grand Prix. ©DPPI/P. Maria

What if Castellet was the scene of the turning point of the season? Firmly installed at the head of the race with around twenty seconds ahead of Max Verstappen after the latter was stopped, Charles Leclerc lost everything in the space of just two turns, the double straight of Beausset.

Serene leader of the French Grand Prix, the pilot of the Team Ferrari was betrayed by its mechanics, as too often this season. Then close to passing through the pit lane, Charles Leclerc lost control of his car as he negotiated the double right of Beausset at high speed and ended his race in the wall at 18e round. On the radio, the Monegasque did not hide his frustration and once again pointed out a problem with his accelerator pedal, the one which had given him so many headaches in Austria a fortnight ago.

Unable to attack Charles Leclerc at the start of the race even though he had been close to him for a long time, Max Verstappen was not asking for that much. Having passed through the pit lane two laps previously, the Batavian took advantage of the stops of the entire peloton to quietly take the lead of the French Grand Prix for the very first time.

Verstappen in insurance

Propelled to the front of the peloton after the misadventures of Charles Leclerc, the reigning world champion then had to revive the pack for the last 34 laps of the race. A task carried out to perfection by the pilot Red Bull who quickly took shelter from Lewis Hamilton, lying in wait in his mirrors after getting the better of Sergio Pérez at the start.

Alone in the world and too strong for the rest of his pursuers, Max Verstappen was never going to be worried again. Lewis Hamilton too short to stand up to him on a long stint, the Dutchman headed straight towards his 7e victory of the 2022 season, the 27the of his career equaling a certain Sir Jackie Stewart, with more than 10 seconds ahead. A finally perfect Sunday for the 2021 world champion who, when setting sail for Hungary, is 63 points ahead of Charles Leclerc. Third under the checkerboard, George Russell offers the first double podium of the campaign to Mercedes.

Sainz saves the furniture at Ferrari

Charles Leclerc on the mat from the 18th lap of the race, all the Scuderia's hopes then rested on Carlos Sainz. Starting from the last row on the grid, the Madrilenian had no trouble moving up through the peloton since he was already in the points after barely 14 laps. He could therefore envisage a finish on the podium. This was without counting on a new blunder by the Reds in the pit lane.

Passing through the pit lane at the time of the Safety Car caused by his teammate's accident, Carlos Sainz saw his mechanics make a longer stop than expected. In the heat of the moment, the latter gave him the starting signal prematurely and the Spaniard almost speared Alex Albon a little. Temporarily back on the podium after a great battle with Sergio Pérez, the winner of the last British Grand Prix was called back to his stand once again for a second stop. Forced to take his 2 second penalty, he came out 5th but was able to move up to 9th place thanks to his fresh tires. While he was still eyeing the podium, the Virtual Safety Car (Guanyu-Zhou stopped on track) put an end to his hopes of Top 3, thus settling for 10 points for 5th position.

Good points for Alpine video games at home

With Fernando Alonso et Esteban Ocon in the Top 10 of the starting grid, Alpine could aim for big points at home. It's done. Too short to shake up Red Bull, Mercedes or Ferrari, Alonso made his experience speak by resisting the charge of McLaren. Lando Norris tried to overtake him for a long time but the Englishman never found an opening on the double world champion, 6th at the finish.

Behind him, Esteban Ocon experienced a lively French Grand Prix. If he received a 5-second penalty after contact with Yuki tsunoda in the first round, the Norman did not let himself be discouraged by this sanction which could have cost him dearly. Gradually returning to the game, the native of Évreux completed a solid second part of the race to slot between the McLarens of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo in 8th position. An excellent operation for Alpine which thanks to the 12 points scored by its drivers takes 4th place in the Manufacturers' standings ahead of the English team with which it was tied before the Grand Prix. Here are the Blues at the foot of the Top 3 and 4 steps ahead of the Orange.

Second Frenchman on the grid, Pierre Gasly tried to move up, but a bad judgment when overtaking Alex Albon caused him to almost fall back to the back of the pack. The Norman may have regained a few places afterwards, but the damage was already done. In front of his audience, he cut the line in a discreet 12th place. 

ALSO READ > Leclerc after his retirement: “At this level, I don’t deserve to win the championship”

Gonzalo Forbes

In charge of promotion formulas (F2, F3, FRECA, F4...). Carried by the grace of Franco Colapinto.

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