What happened to Charles Leclerc in Suzuka qualifying? Former GP2 Series champion explains. Davide Valsecchi reflects on Charles Leclerc's performance in Suzuka qualifying.

The qualifying session for the 2024 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix unfortunately went as predicted: Max Verstappen clinched the pole position, though challenged by his Red Bull teammate, and Lando Norris made a breakthrough, finishing in the top 3. Scuderia Ferrari, however, was a bit underwhelming compared to rumors about its great race pace and the possibility of troubling Red Bull: Carlos Sainz will start fourth, while Charles Leclerc eighth.

Around this “disaster” of the Monegasque, big accusations have already started, when he is just a tenth away from his Ferrari teammate who is currently in great form. However, it is fair to highlight that number 16 made a mistake that compromised the session, as Italian former racing driver and the 2012 GP2 Series champion Davide Valsecchi explained: “Charles Leclerc was a bit of a disappointment of the day. With eight minutes to go, everyone had made an attempt except for him, who went out on the track and did just one flying lap in the middle of the session to avoid yellow flags. Why is this? Because in the first run of Q1, his time was not competitive enough to comfortably make the cut, and he was forced to use the second set of new tires, so he didn’t have any for the end, unlike everyone else. However, his lap was not competitive and he was a tenth away from his teammate; his starting position was decent, but then in the second attempt Alonso pushed him back.” – the Italian pointed out.

“In Charles Leclerc, there was a lack of performance. Probably in the last lap, he would have pulled off some magic, but not with these tires. Anyway, he got closer to his teammate compared to Q1: the gap is a tenth, but it’s many positions, from fourth to eighth. Looking at the telemetry, it is seen that Carlos Sainz was more consistent through all sectors, while number 16 excelled in the central one, losing a lot in the first and third. The Monegasque crossed the finish line and said, ‘That’s the best I could do,’ not even he could explain it,” then stated the former driver in his recent YouTube channel video.