Ferrari: a second place in Silverstone that does not feel like a defeat

After crossing the finish line in the 2021 British Grand Prix, the spirit of the driver emerged, particularly strong in the case of Charles Leclerc. Having led the Silverstone race for fifty laps, only to give up the lead two laps from the end, it left a bit of a bad taste in his mouth, and at the moment the Monegasque did not hide it. Half an hour later, after the podium and after the many pats on the back from all over the Ferrari garage, Charles began to savor what he managed to do during the Silverstone weekend, supported by an SF21 car which in a weekend announced as ‘difficult’ has managed to become one of the protagonists.

The balance of the English weekend for the Scuderia is definitely the best of the season, even surpassing the Monaco weekend, equivalent to that of Silverstone in terms of a best result (second place), but lower in terms of total points won.

In the red box they worked flawlessly, preparing the weekend in detail and confirming a good performance already in Friday’s qualifying. It was already clear in the Sprint Qualifying that the fourth time in qualifying was not by chance, with Charles Leclerc able to keep up with Bottas without experiencing tire management problems.

The Verstappen-Hamilton contact was obviously very welcome news for Charles Leclerc and Ferrari, but after the restart Charles immediately made it clear that the lead, also thanks to external circumstances, was not an out of place position.

In the Mercedes garage they thought they could overtake the Monegasque in the early laps, but instead it was Charles who managed the first stint of the race in the best possible way, with a steady pace that for Hamilton became progressively too fast due to the overheating of his rear tires.

The use of the mediums was instead impeccable on the cars of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, to the point of assuming that in the Maranello team’s box they were thinking of a second part of the race with the softs.

However, Charles Leclerc’s first stint was not without tension, due to an engine complication that at times suffered from cuts in terms of power. At the pit wall they managed to identify the problem, and Charles confirmed a good dose of cold blood by being able to follow the instructions of the engineers driving at Silverstone with Hamilton in the mirrors.

The Ferrari number 16 managed to reach the pit stop with a margin of 2.3 seconds over the Mercedes, which became 12 considering the penalty served by Hamilton before the tire change. If the values on the field would have been the same as those from the first stint, at that point Charles Leclerc would have managed the race up to the checkered flag, considering that at Silverstone neither Bottas, let alone Norris’s McLaren, had the pace of the Monegasque.

But the transition to hard has given Hamilton wings. After just a few laps it became clear that Mercedes would win the race, but Charles Leclerc did not give up an inch, only giving in with just over two laps to go. Yet this place of honor should not be seen as a defeat. The values on the field have been known for some time, and for both Charles Leclerc and Ferrari, the second position confirmed under the checkered flag is a great result.

Verstappen aside, Charles Leclerc had no other benefits from the progress of the race, and all the opponents who finished the race behind him cannot complain about anything. “We didn’t expect to be able to fight for the win – commented Charles – after qualifying we knew we could be competitive enough but not that competitive. It was incredible to fight for the win.”

On a Sunday when Charles Leclerc was back on the podium (which had been missing for a year) and Ferrari returned to being among the top teams, the only negative aspect was the slow pit stop which compromised Carlos Sainz’s good comeback. The nine seconds lost at the pit stop cost the Spaniard a position in favor of Daniel Ricciardo, but above all he was no longer in a position to be able to chase Lando Norris on a free track, making life easier to two McLarens which are the Maranello team’s main rival in the fight for third place in the Constructors’ classification.

But if Ferrari continues to express itself with the potential seen this weekend there will be other occasions, starting with the next stage at the Hungaroring, a track that, unlike Silverstone, should better suit the characteristics of the SF21, especially if in Budapest, such as traditionally, there will be the usual Hungarian summer temperatures.