The first day of free practice for the British Grand Prix didn’t go as Charles Leclerc had hoped due to a technical issue with the electrical system that kept him sidelined for the entire second free practice session without being able to go out on track.
It was a significant problem that required the mechanics to replace a large part of the car to resolve the fault. However, the Monegasque driver is confident that everything should be in order for the sessions tomorrow when rain is expected to disrupt the work done by the teams on Friday.
“There was a small issue with the car, but that’s how it goes. The team identified what went wrong, and we practically changed everything on the car. It should be all right for tomorrow.”
“It was an electrical problem, although it shouldn’t have any influence on our weekend, except for the fact that we couldn’t run in FP2, which is a shame because that’s when we prepare for the race, and Sunday looks dry, so it will be a bit like going into unknown territory. Tomorrow should be different with the arrival of rain, so we’ll see.” – he explained.
Indeed, not being able to run, Charles Leclerc missed the most representative session of Friday, with temperatures more similar to those that will realistically be encountered in the race and with the rubber laid down from FP1. Despite this, Charles Leclerc tried to look at the bright side, emphasizing that the feeling in the first session seemed promising and that, at least in terms of single-lap pace, the car seems capable of competing for the higher positions in the standings.
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For FP2, he had planned to test some small setup changes, including the beam wing that Sainz had tried in the first free practice session for comparison, but the issue forced him to watch from the pit box.
“In FP1, we still learned something, and we made some changes for the second session that we couldn’t test. It’s a shame. I think we’re strong on a single lap, but we struggle a bit more over long runs. In FP2, with Carlos, in FP1, also with me, it’s difficult to make comparisons because everyone was on different programs, but obviously, the pace that Carlos showed in FP2 indicates where we are. I think that’s where we need to work because we’re a bit behind in terms of race pace.” – the Monegasque driver pointed out.
The big unknown for tomorrow seems to be the arrival of rain, and there is great attention surrounding Charles Leclerc’s performance, as he has shown some weaknesses in mixed conditions in recent races, lacking the right confidence behind the wheel. However, Charles Leclerc has worked intensively with the engineers to try to understand what could be improved, so if rain arrives, it could be a test to evaluate these driving modifications: “Let’s see how it goes tomorrow because I’ve struggled in these conditions in the last few races, but I’ve worked a lot on this aspect, so I have confidence that it will go better.” – the Ferrari man concluded after Friday practice for the British Grand Prix.
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