In the final round of the 2022 Formula 1 season, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Scuderia Ferrari and Charles Leclerc managed a small but important sporting performance, namely beating Sergio Perez’s Red Bull by making one less pit stop at the Yas Marina circuit. The Monegasque was very good at managing the set of medium tires first and then the set of hard tyres. The top speed of the RB18 made it difficult for the Ferrari F1-75 to overtake on the track even with the DRS open and therefore the Maranello pit wall went for this courageous strategy to give Charles Leclerc a chance to finish second in the overall Drivers’ standings.
The Monegasque did not let the opportunity slip by demonstrating all of his skills in terms of tire management, a key factor on which Charles has worked hard, considering that at the beginning of his adventure in Ferrari his driving style was seen as a ‘tyre-eater’ approach. At the same time, Yas Marina’s performance went against the trend seen for most of the races in the second part of the 2022 Formula 1 season, in which Ferrari suffered significantly more tire degradation than the competition. It happened in Mexico, but also in Austin, where Charles Leclerc, after being overtaken on track by Max Verstappen, was unable to stay close behind the two-time world champion who then went on to win in Texas.
Charles Leclerc had a very simple explanation for the tyre degradation highlighted by everyone in the final round of the championship: “When you find yourself having to deal with a car less competitive than your opponents, the only weapon you have left is to push as hard as possible and this is obviously not a good approach for the tires” – admitted the Ferrari driver in an interview with the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport – “From my point of view it is easy to explain why we had this problem, after the significant step forward made by Red Bull in the summer, especially with Max. We just had to push hard” – Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc concluded.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also 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!
Leave a Reply