Charles Leclerc crashes, Lewis Hamilton eliminated – Ferrari’s tough Saturday in Azerbaijan
It was a nightmare Saturday for Ferrari in Baku, with the team principal Frederic Vasseur trying to remain calm and shift the focus toward the race after another disappointing qualifying session.
Ferrari ends up on the fifth and sixth rows
Lewis Hamilton was eliminated in Q2, while Charles Leclerc crashed into the barriers at Turn 15 in Q3. Ferrari had finished Friday with a one-two, but the third free practice session had already shown the real balance of power on track. Closing qualifying on the fifth and sixth rows represents yet another disaster for the Maranello team, which will now need to recover in the race. That will not be easy, especially as McLaren also starts just ahead of the two Ferraris.
What particularly troubled Ferrari was the drop in temperature compared to Friday. With the cooler conditions, it was much harder to bring the medium compound tires into the correct operating window. It was on those very tires that Charles Leclerc hit the wall at Turn 15 during Q3, ending his session prematurely.
Fred Vasseur defends Ferrari’s approach
Lewis Hamilton felt that qualifying could have been managed better, but Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur did not agree. “We could not add more fuel, because that would have given away too much to our rivals. Regarding the tires, both compounds are represented on the front row, so the issue is not really about the compounds themselves, but about our difficulty in getting the tires up to temperature,” Fred Vasseur explained to Sky. “It was a complicated session, with gusts of wind and generally very cold conditions. The key was to put everything together, and Charles’s lap before the accident was good—not at Carlos Sainz’s level, but still good. He was faster than Lando Norris, for example.”
Looking ahead, Fred Vasseur urged focus: “Now we need to concentrate on tomorrow and not throw everything away. It will be difficult because with small wings the DRS effect is reduced, but as always in Baku, anything can happen. We will need to be sharp and take advantage of every opportunity.” – the French manager pointed out.
For Ferrari, the challenge will be to turn a disappointing qualifying into a strong race result, with Charles Leclerc starting 10th and Lewis Hamilton 12th. Tire management, strategy, and seizing any chances created by Baku’s unpredictable nature will be crucial if the team hopes to recover valuable points.
Leave a Reply