Charles Leclerc has explained the dramatic drop in performance that both he and Ferrari experienced during the Austrian Grand Prix, revealing why the Monegasque driver has recently struggled to deliver his usual level of competitiveness. “I opted for a setup that was a bit…” Leclerc admitted, before outlining the challenges that affected his race at the Red Bull Ring.
The Ferrari driver shared some behind-the-scenes insight into the difficulties he encountered in Austria. Leclerc now needs to rebuild his confidence with the SF-26, while Ferrari will be hoping to leave the disappointing Spielberg weekend behind when Formula 1 heads to Silverstone.
Leclerc’s confidence behind the wheel has always been closely linked to braking performance. As a driver renowned for braking exceptionally late, feeling comfortable under braking allows him to unlock a significant amount of lap time. However, he is still adapting to the new Carbon Industrie brake discs introduced after the Monaco incident and the earlier issues involving the Brembo brake calipers.
Lewis Hamilton admitted he was pleased to finish ahead of his Ferrari teammate in Austria, but realistically the result was only fifth and eighth for the Scuderia. Ferrari clearly has much bigger issues to solve if it wants to return to fighting consistently for victories, with power unit performance remaining one of the team’s biggest concerns. The Scuderia also made setup mistakes ahead of Sunday’s race, further compromising its competitiveness.
Charles Leclerc: “I just have to keep my head down, continue working and…”
“It’s very difficult to understand. I don’t think anybody really understands the performance swings from one weekend to the next. In Barcelona we were probably one of the strongest cars on Sunday, and we brought some upgrades that worked. I don’t think it’s all about the package. I simply think these cars are very, very sensitive to every little detail. As soon as the setup isn’t exactly right, you pay a huge price. We had a very good example of that this weekend.”
Charles Leclerc’s struggles appear to stem from a combination of factors that are preventing him from building the confidence he needs to extract the maximum performance from the SF-26.
“I opted for a setup that was a bit closer to what worked well for me last year. This season it has never really worked. The rear just wasn’t there, I was sliding around and overheating the rear tyres. It was very difficult. We’ll have to work hard because, honestly, at the moment it doesn’t seem to be working. Qualifying was better, but once again the race wasn’t good. At times like this I just have to keep my head down, continue working and try to figure out how to unlock the potential of this car.”
Leave a Reply