Leclerc surprised by Red Bull: 'I thought they would win every race'
F1 News
- Toby McLuskie
For the second Grand Prix in succession, it was Charles Leclerc who lost out to his teammate Carlos Sainz. In Singapore, the Spaniard managed to take the win, while Leclerc - who actually sacrificed his race for Sainz - struggled to be flagged fourth. Especially with the performance in Monza earlier, Leclerc sees that the Italian team is on the right track.
"We as Ferrari wanted to grab the constructors' title this year, after finishing second last year," the young Monegasque explained. "After the first few races, it was clear to us that it was not in the cards, because Red Bull was in a league of their own." So the Italians now have a clear goal in mind: "We want to become a winning team again, but the best possible scenario at the moment is to end second and we will do everything we can to achieve that."
It will be an improbably exciting battle, possibly up to and including the final Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi. "It's so close together, with Mercedes, Aston Martin and even McLaren. It's just a shame it's about second place and not the championship."
Boost for Ferrari
The win in Singapore has given the team an incredible boost: "Especially after the first part of the season that we had. It was obviously a difficult one. To be honest, if you had asked me four or five races ago, I would have said that Red Bull would have won all races. So if there was one opportunity, it was Singapore, as they were probably not on top form. And the team has done an incredible job of being there at the right time. And Carlos did a great job too. So it's a big boost for the team and for the rest of the year. It's been two or three races that we feel we are going in the right direction, that we are working in the right direction. And to finally make this step and to win a race this year is a huge boost for the team."
Collaboration with Sainz
That Leclerc was willing to sacrifice his own race to help the team says enough about the cooperation within the team. "In terms of working with Carlos, I think we've always worked well. And it was clear already from the Saturday night after qualifying, but probably even before qualifying, that whoever was first, the second car would have to help the car in front. So this was clear. We did a good job, so I'm really happy that the team could win. And it also motivates me and gives me an extra push in order to win one before the end of the season."