Fred Vasseur defends Charles Leclerc after Q3 crash: “He pushed like crazy and had the pace for pole”. Fred Vasseur believes Charles Leclerc had the pace to secure pole position.

The Ferrari team principal commented on the Monegasque driver’s mistake, which will force him to start only 10th on the grid in Barcelona.

A competitive Ferrari

After a Friday that raised some doubts about Ferrari’s chances in Barcelona qualifying, the SF-26 took a significant step forward on Saturday, with the Scuderia emerging as Mercedes’ main rival in the battle for pole position.

Things did not go according to plan for Charles Leclerc, however. The Monegasque driver crashed into the barriers at the beginning of Q3 and will therefore have to start the Spanish Grand Prix from tenth on the grid. Lewis Hamilton, meanwhile, secured a front-row start after missing pole position by just six hundredths of a second.

Vasseur understands Leclerc’s frustration

In his post-qualifying interviews, Charles Leclerc was, as usual, extremely hard on himself for the mistake, repeatedly stating that he felt ashamed about what had happened.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur commented on his driver’s reaction:

“I think it’s normal to be disappointed after a session like this. I believe he had the pace to take pole position. Finishing tenth was not what he expected, and it was not what we expected either. It’s true that he pushed like crazy, and we also pushed like crazy to bring performance with this Barcelona upgrade package. That’s why he feels frustrated.

“He pushed a little too hard on corner entry, but he was absolutely not lacking pace from the beginning of the weekend. He was there in every session and he was competitive throughout. Carrying five or six kilometres per hour more than on the previous lap at that point is what caused the accident.” – the French manager pointed out.

Fred Vasseur also shared his thoughts on Lewis Hamilton, who has appeared increasingly confident over the last few race weekends.

“I think he is improving. He is improving together with the car and together with the team. Last weekend he finished second, which was Lewis Hamilton’s best result so far with Ferrari, and he arrived in Barcelona with a lot of confidence in both the car and the team. He knew we would bring upgrades that could improve performance, and he found the pace during the course of the weekend despite missing FP1. Over the last three or four race weekends, you can clearly feel that he has more confidence, is more comfortable, and is delivering the results,” Fred Vasseur concluded in his interview with Sky.