Charles Leclerc finished outside the Top 5 at the Las Vegas GP. Another disappointing result for Ferrari, despite the Nevada track being one of the season’s most favorable on paper. A flawed strategy further cost Charles Leclerc several positions.
On a track that should have suited the team—at least in theory, though it has become increasingly worn this year—Ferrari faced yet another difficult weekend in an already complex season that has so far yielded zero wins and few highlights, despite high initial expectations.
After a dramatic Saturday on the sporting side, with Charles Leclerc only ninth and Lewis Hamilton eliminated in Q1, starting last on the grid, the Maranello team managed to finish the Las Vegas GP with both cars in the points.
Charles Leclerc starts ninth and fights for the podium
Starting ninth, Charles Leclerc attempted a strong comeback to fight for a podium, but things did not go according to plan. A delayed pit stop, switching from Medium to Hard tires, allowed several rivals to undercut him, pushing him out of the Top 5.
At that point, Charles Leclerc had to rebuild part of his comeback, but he couldn’t manage it. Once he reached the DRS train led by an excellent Andrea Kimi Antonelli behind Oscar Piastri’s McLaren MCL39, Charles Leclerc got stuck and finished sixth, while the fight for second place in the Constructors’ Championship slipped further away.
Charles Leclerc on the race
“It didn’t go that well because when you start ninth and finish sixth, you can’t really say it went well, and it’s really frustrating. On the other hand, my race was beautiful and crazy. I took enormous risks to overtake because on the straights we were really slow,” Charles Leclerc said after the race.
“It wasn’t a very fun race. I don’t know exactly what happened just before, during, and shortly after the pit stop because we lost so many positions. We could have done something better.”
“I pushed at 200% for the entire Grand Prix. I really gave everything. I had a bit more pace in the second part of the race, I managed to get closer to Antonelli and Piastri, but I had to make sure not to lose DRS because without it, I was really slow. So it was a difficult race to manage, and I don’t think I could have done anything more than I did. I got stuck behind Piastri, and that certainly didn’t help us.”
“Piastri was behind me in the first stint, then he undercut us and ended up ahead. That’s something we need to discuss. For me, it was a surprise to see him in front. From the cockpit, I thought he was behind us. This is something we need to analyze.”
Qualifying problems highlight Ferrari’s ongoing struggles
The main problem for Ferrari in Las Vegas emerged during Saturday qualifying. When the track is wet, the Reds are not competitive. Charles Leclerc again addressed this issue, explaining what needs to be done to finally improve a situation that has persisted for far too many years.
“It’s difficult to say if we’ll be able to find a solution to improve the car in the wet. We’ve had the same problems for years, and when it seems like the team has found a solution, we always get a negative answer. I think the best thing to do is go on track and run a lot in the next wet session to try different things and see if we can find something to improve in those conditions.” – the Monegasque driver concluded.
With only Qatar and Abu Dhabi remaining, time is running out to solve a weakness that has haunted the Scuderia for seasons. Until Ferrari cracks the code, more “frustrating” Sundays like Las Vegas are almost guaranteed – no matter how strong the underlying pace looks on paper.
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