For Scuderia Ferrari, today is another difficult day in a 2023 Formula One season that started under the worst auspices. The eighth position of Carlos Sainz Jr. and, above all, the 11th position of Charles Leclerc reflect the difficulties encountered during the qualifying session for the Canadian Grand Prix, which was held at the 4.361-kilometre Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve in Montreal.
The focus at Ferrari is on what happened with Charles Leclerc in Q2. The driver from Monte Carlo took to the track with Intermediate tires and questioned why the Maranello team didn’t fit him with the Soft tires, considering that the racing line was already dry.
The team asked Charles to complete a lap with the Intermediates to set a good time that could secure his spot in Q3. At that point, Charles Leclerc made a mistake and missed the opportunity to set the required time. Once he returned to the pits to switch to slicks, it started raining again, forcing him to come back for another tire change. However, it was too late by then.
At the end of the qualifying session, Charles Leclerc blamed the team, stating that he didn’t understand how they couldn’t realize from the pit wall that the track was dry enough for him to go out immediately with the Soft tires. But after the initial criticism, the driver retracted his statement a few minutes later in an interview with Sky Sport, thanks to a careful management of communication within Ferrari.
On this topic, the team principal of Scuderia Ferrari, Frédéric Vasseur, gave his version of events. In his words, it is clear that he intends to tone down the criticism, stating that internal matters should be dealt with privately to quell the controversies triggered by Charles Leclerc’s adrenaline-fueled reaction after today’s bitter disappointment.
Show your support for Scuderia Ferrari with official merchandise collection! Click here to enter the F1 online Store and shop securely! And also get your F1 tickets for every race with VIP hospitality and unparalleled insider access. Click here for the best offers to support Charles and Carlos from the track!
“If we look at Friday and this morning, the pace was better. But this afternoon, it was a matter of chaos due to the tire choice, and in Q2, we only had one lap to set a time, which didn’t go well. But tomorrow, we will definitely have to do better. We’ve discussed it with Charles. At that moment, we needed him to set a time to protect ourselves from a possible red flag, and everyone did the same. I don’t want to blame Charles [for the mistake he made on the track], it happened. We were convinced that the car would perform well with the Soft tires; it had a good pace.”
“With Charles, we have a good relationship, and I understand his frustration. It’s probably been heightened by what we saw yesterday. We’ve done very well on dry laps, which has been the case often since the beginning of the season, but especially in terms of race pace. Good rhythm, good consistency over long stints. He had high expectations for today. It didn’t go in the right direction, but we discussed it together, had a good conversation, and it’s always useful to have these discussions when things are calmer. But for me, it’s normal to hear certain things when the result isn’t what was hoped for. I understand.” – the French manager pointed out.
“The qualifying session was difficult because we were on the limit between Intermediate and Soft tires at certain moments. It wasn’t an easy session. Sometimes it’s a matter of being in the right place at the right time, and vice versa. It didn’t go in the best way, but let’s see what we can do for tomorrow’s race.” – the Ferrari boss added.
After today’s qualifying session, Fred Vasseur tried to provide an interpretation of the race that Charles Leclerc will face tomorrow. The expectations can be summed up in one word: comeback. The SF-23 showed very promising things in terms of race pace during Friday’s practice sessions, but they will need to be confirmed tomorrow, weather permitting.
“In yesterday’s practice sessions, we were very close to Red Bull on dry laps, but we were also very fast and consistent in terms of race pace with Charles. The stint was very long, and we saw good rhythm and good consistency. We’ve made good progress. I don’t want to create excessive expectations, but we are on the right track. I would have liked a better position in today’s qualifying, but that’s how it went, and we’ll see how it goes tomorrow,” concluded Frederic Vasseur.
Leave a Reply