Scuderia Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has admitted to being very pleased with the direction 2022 Formula 1 cars have gone in regarding the difficulty in following the car ahead and fighting other drivers. The sport designed all-new regulations for the 2022 F1 championship, which had the main goal of helping improve the show by making it easier for drivers to follow the opponent in front of them and no longer lose as much performance. This meant they often had to avoid attempting passing and prefer to remain a few seconds behind to protect the tyres.
With two races completed in the 2022 Formula 1 campaign, it seems these updated cars are able to achieve their intended target. Charles Leclerc himself has had a major role in proving this, as he was involved in several wheel-to-wheel duels with Red Bull Racing Dutch driver Max Verstappen, with the two battled for the race win at the Bahrain International Circuit and in Saudi Arabia seven days later.
Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen each have one victory so far and seem to be main title contenders for 2022, but results aside, the Monegasque driver reflects on what he feels is a major improvement when it comes to fighting on track: “Last year, you didn’t really know what balance you would get going into a corner and that would make it very difficult for our confidence to follow anyone, you would lose so much grip.” – the Ferrari driver explained.
“It is definitely a step in the right direction and I love it. I think for racing it is great. When Max overtook me [in Saudi Arabia] at first I thought my race was not over, I never give up, but I thought at this point it would be very difficult for me to stay behind and I was very surprised I could actually stay there. It was nice.” – the Monegasque driver added.
Formula 1 official tyre supplier Pirelli also brought new 18-inch tyres for this new championship with Charles Leclerc talking up the hard C2 tyre used in Saudi Arabia – a compound he reveals was allowing drivers to push hard but keep the performance needed to stay close to the cars in front: “I am really enjoying it, that’s for sure. I think Bahrain is one of the easiest tracks to fight on the calendar. I think in Saudi Arabia we were also helped by those hard tyres. I think everyone felt quite good with them and they are good tyres to push on and actually it was allowing us to follow very closely.” – Scuderia Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc concluded.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection from Puma! Enter the online Pume Store and shop securely! And get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
The third round of the 2022 Formula 1 season is scheduled to take place next week, as the Albert Park circuits hosts the Australian Grand Prix, which has been missing from the F1 calendar in the last two years.
Leave a Reply