A mistake costs Charles Leclerc pole position, as he will start third in Singapore: the error occurred during an almost perfect lap.
Carlos Sainz’s perfect third sector secured him pole position for the Singapore GP: Charles Leclerc can only blame himself as he had the pole in his hands until the final corners. Let’s discover the error that “left” him in P3.
The F1 Singapore Grand Prix qualifying session crowned Sainz in Ferrari #55 with pole position, his second consecutive one after the home race in Monza. Behind him on the same grid row will be George Russell, just 0.072 seconds slower.
While Carlos Sainz and George Russell likely delivered their best performances, Leclerc made a mistake. The Monegasque driver’s error occurred in the third sector and probably cost him the pole position and the subsequent Ferrari front row. Let’s analyze the incident and the laps of the top three.
Q3 standings – Top 3
Carlos Sainz – 1:30.984
George Russell – 1:31.056 (+0.072s)
Charles Leclerc – 1:31.063 (+0.079s)
Charles Leclerc lost pole position in the third sector
Yet, Leclerc had the pole position in hand until the very first micro-sectors of the third sector. The Ferrari driver arrived at the second sector with the provisional pole in his pocket. In P2 – at the second sector – Russell was ahead of Sainz. The Spaniard utilized an excellent sector three.
Lap up to the second sector – Top 3
Charles Leclerc – 1:05.182
George Russell – 1:05.191 (+0.009)
Carlos Sainz – 1:05.216 (+0.034)
Out of the 8 micro-sectors in the final sector, Leclerc’s first three were optimal. The Monegasque was the fastest (purple) in the first and third micro-sectors, and he also improved in the second (green time).
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The error in turn 17
Charles Leclerc’s error occurred at the exit of turn 17: the Monegasque driver made a noticeable correction along with a wobble. The mistake caused car #16 to record a worse time in the fourth and fifth micro-sectors, which lit up in yellow.
As he crossed the finish line, Charles Leclerc could only manage third place. His third sector was 0.113 seconds slower than that of his teammate Sainz.
As mentioned, the key factor was the third sector, where Carlos Sainz was untouchable. The Spaniard completed the third sector, from turn 14 to turn 19, in 25.768 seconds. It was the best time.
George Russell recorded a third sector with a time of 25.865s, 16 thousandths faster than Charles Leclerc’s third sector, which he completed in 25.881s.
Source: f1ingenerale
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