Charles Leclerc disappointed: “Cold tires right out of the pits, pole or front row was possible”. Charles Leclerc explains he couldn’t take advantage of his tires as they weren’t up to temperature.

Making mistakes or missing opportunities at the worst moment is never ideal, especially on a track like Singapore, where qualifying is almost crucial.

That’s what happened to Charles Leclerc and Ferrari. After Carlos Sainz’s incident at the start of Q3, each of the nine remaining drivers had only one attempt for pole, but the Monegasque driver couldn’t take advantage of his tires as they weren’t up to temperature.

From the moment he left the pits, Charles Leclerc took just under a minute due to the traffic ahead. In those 60 seconds, the front tires lost temperature, and by the end of qualifying, he stated that he hadn’t had the right temperatures since leaving his box.

“The tires weren’t even 50% ready. We left the pits, and the front tire temperatures were many degrees lower than the ideal range. I don’t know why it happened. It only happened once, and it was during the last attempt in Q3.”

Arriving at turn 2, Charles Leclerc went beyond track limits and had his time canceled—regardless, it wasn’t competitive enough to place him seventh. Instead, he will have to start from ninth, alongside teammate Carlos Sainz in an all-Ferrari fifth row.

“I tried my best to bring the fronts up to temperature, but it didn’t work. I got to turn 1 and locked up. From that point on, it was a disaster. It’s a shame because we do all the preparation in the world to get to Q3 and make that lap, then we face that problem… I’m disappointed.” – the Monegasque driver pointed out.

Charles Leclerc’s disappointment stems from his belief that pole—or second place—was within reach today for both him and the team. However, the low front tire temperatures prevented him from taking the risks that could have paid off, which remain only in the mind of the Monte Carlo driver.

“Today in Q3, we had the potential to be first or second. We had found our way back after Free Practice 3. We just needed to take more risks, but I couldn’t because the tires were cold. I’m very disappointed and would prefer not to talk about the race. We know that qualifying in Singapore is everything, so the hope of winning is slim. Then we’ll see. Tomorrow, I’ll definitely feel better and be at 100%, but I’m really disappointed,” the Ferrari driver concluded at the end of the qualifying session in Singapore.