Italian media critical of Ferrari driver in Brazil: 'Mistake cost Leclerc'

Mercedes at last! Russell beats teammate Hamilton to the finish line and thus takes the German team's first victory of the year. Between Sainz in third place, the squabbles between Perez and Verstappen and the numerous overtakes, let's see what the main Italian media had to say about Sunday at Interlagos.

This time the 10 in Leo Turrini's report cards inevitably goes to George Russell for his 'double first', while his teammate gets a 9. Sainz and Leclerc both get 8. The former is 'unlucky, due to his visor ending up in the wrong place', while the latter is the author of 'a great comeback, after the initial misfortune'. For Turrini Verstappen 'was no longer used to Hamilton being close. And it shows', while Perez 'takes a siesta for 71 laps'.

For Mara Sangiorgio, on the other hand, with this Grand Prix Mercedes 'have already sent a strong and direct message to all their adversaries towards 2023', even if not with the driver in front that was expected, thanks also to the 'coolness and maturity of a champion' of George Russell. Sangiorgio then dwells on the final stages of the race, in which both Perez and Leclerc wanted to get the position from their teammate. "The Dutchman also has unfinished business with teammate Perez. While the Mexican is still fighting for second place in the drivers' standings with Leclerc, Verstappen did not give him his position on the track even at the team's request, taking a final earful,' she says of the situation at Red Bull.

While speaking of Ferrari, she comments: 'Even Leclerc, in the end fourth, would have loved to swap his position with Sainz, but the Spaniard deservedly made it onto the podium. Brilliant and fast, this Ferrari on Sunday liked it. Misfortunes and regrets remain, but certainly smiles too'.

For the Gazzetta, this victory for Russell puts him "among the greats". "It is not correct to speak of a generational handover, but it is certainly a fact that Mercedes' first win of the season bears the signature of the young lion and not of the established champion," commented Giusto Ferronato on seeing the young Russell win ahead of the experienced Hamilton.

On the other hand, this Italian medium sees Red Bull struggle. Verstappen first 'practically eliminated himself in a mistaken overtaking attempt on his rival [Hamilton] à la esse Senna' and then even attacked his teammate, taking away precious world championship points and disobeying the team. Their verdict on the Ferraris is not particularly positive: 'Ferrari struggled, but was never in the running to beat the Mercedes, who were much more on the ball'.

Mercedes 'reborn' and Red Bull 'in trouble'. This is the verdict given by Corriere dello Sport on the Interlagos race. The Austrian team 'are human in Brazil. On the Interlagos circuit, for the first time in 2022, the world champions struggle and, as if that were not enough, they make a bad impression at the end of the race'. For the newspaper, these rumblings at each other between Perez and Verstappen are 'something to keep an eye on, also in view of next season, when the two drivers will have to go back to rowing in the same direction'.

Corriere dello Sport have a word for Sainz: "The Spaniard had to serve five grid penalties, but already in the Sprint Race (he finished second) he had shown good things. In the end, he managed to do well in the race as well, surrendering only to the two Mercedes and finishing third despite team-mate Charles Leclerc's request to reverse positions. While Leclerc, precisely because of this last request, became "the protagonist of a not particularly happy episode at the end of the race" and will be forced to do better than Perez in Abu Dhabi to take second place.

The Corriere Sera believes Charles Leclerc's performance was not enough: "In our opinion, the attack on Norris on the outside, at a point where overtaking fails nine times out of ten, is a mistake that cost Leclerc the chance of a very different race. And the fact that he had almost managed to overtake the Englishman (who touched him, knocking him off, after skidding down a kerb) only reinforces the concept of a hasty manoeuvre in the wrong place: if he had waited until the finishing straight, Charles would have eaten him in a salad. Red Bull deserves a 3, but further down the line is the FIA, which deserves an unflattering 1 for slow intervention and too many hidden flaws in the regulations.

On the Perez-Verstappen issue, however, Autosprint poses a question and also gives an answer: 'Is Verstappen's behaviour on the last lap at Interlagos really surprising? It should be to a lesser extent, as Max has shown himself to be as great a performer in recent years as he has been individualistic and disinclined to team reasons." "For a long time now, the collaboration between Perez and Verstappen has been at a minimal level ," it is said, and according to Fabiano Polimeni this affair "leaves dross on the field".