Norris surprised Leclerc with risky move: 'Did not expect that!'
F1 News
Charles Leclerc made another attempt to get in front of McLaren driver Lando Norris on the last lap of the sprint race, but the action was in vain. The two drivers almost crashed together. The stewards still looked at whether the Englishman from Bristol should have had a penalty, but no further action was taken. After the session, Leclerc told his side of the story.
On the final lap, Charles Leclerc was pushing hard to overtake Lando Norris. As the two drivers were fighting for the last place on the podium in the Sprint, Norris braked hard in front of the Monegasque driver, but received no penalty for his action. After the session, Leclerc shares his side of the story.
"I did not expect him to do that," Leclerc began telling Sky Sports about his clash with Norris on the final lap of the Sprint. "Maybe in the heat of the moment, I considered that he moved under braking. I've got to look back at the images. He seems to be on the limit with the way he took the line, but at the end, he's racing as well. He wanted to keep that position. I tried; it was a close call; we nearly crashed. But at the end, nobody crashed and he finished in front. I haven't watched the images yet."
Leclerc predicts the rest of the weekend
Following the Sprint, Leclerc's teammate, Carlos Sainz declared he was surprised by Ferrari's pace. The Spaniard finished in second, behind Max Verstappen, but ahead of Lando Norris. Leclerc also finished closely behind the Spaniard and the McLaren driver.
According to the Monegasque driver, Sunday can turn out to be better for the Scuderia, but he is not overly confident about Qualifying. "Let’s say we are strong in the race. In qualifying, I think we will struggle a bit more for issues that we know inside the team," Leclerc concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Esteban den Toom
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