Charles Leclerc aims for his third Monaco pole, seeking victory at his home Grand Prix this weekend.
Charles Leclerc hopes to secure his third pole position in four years at the Monaco Grand Prix this weekend, a crucial step if he is to finally win his home race.
However, the Ferrari driver, who has never finished on the podium at his home event, is aiming for nothing less than victory in a race where he has often faced misfortune.
“Victory is what we must aim for,” Leclerc said today ahead of the free practice sessions.
“We’ve seen in recent races that Red Bull, McLaren, and ourselves were quite close in qualifying, and we know how important qualifying is here.”
“We have to put everything together, and if we’re on pole, it will give us a good chance to achieve what we want, which is a win.”
“Second or third place doesn’t interest me here; victory is what we must aim for. If we’re on pole, it will give us a good chance to win, which is what we really want.”
Leclerc claimed his first pole position at Monaco in 2021, during a season dominated by Red Bull and Mercedes. Ferrari has not secured a pole position so far this year, and Leclerc hopes to pull off another surprise this weekend.
“I feel like at Monaco, we always start a bit from scratch. As much as we’ve seen in the last four races, I think it won’t be too different. There can still be surprises.”
“We saw it in 2021 with us, where we were nowhere, but then we came to Monaco, and our car worked very well. So we’ll have to see after Friday where we stand compared to the others. But I’d be surprised if we’re not at least in the running for pole.”
Leclerc’s Best Home Race Finish is Fourth Place
Charles Leclerc’s best result at his home race is fourth place, achieved in 2022. However, this was a disappointment after leading the early stages of the Grand Prix, only to lose time in the pits. He admitted he is eager to reverse his string of poor results at home.
“Obviously, it’s always a very special feeling during the Monaco week. I think it is for all drivers, but for me in particular, having grown up here, it’s very special. So I’m really looking forward to it.”
“We have always been competitive here, so I hope it will be the same this weekend. However, the outcome of the weekend has never been what I wanted. We’ve worked hard on this, prepared in the best way possible, and I hope this weekend will be the one.”
No Concerns Over Ferrari Engine Performance
After the race in Imola, Leclerc revealed that Ferrari had lost the pole and perhaps the victory due to a strategy issue with engine usage. Are there concerns about the performance of the V6 turbo hybrid?
“No, it’s not a problem. Obviously, we saw it a bit in the last race. We saw it a bit in Jeddah, but I think it’s more about how we manage the energy. And it’s not something set in stone that we can’t change in the short term, so we just need to think about it. But it’s not a big deal.”
“It seems that Red Bull and McLaren were on the positive side of things at Imola in this area. We lacked a bit of time to work on that, so we reviewed the matter at the factory.”
“I don’t think it will make such a difference here in Monaco. We are in a very different situation. However, it could be the case for the rest of the season, so we’ve conducted a proper analysis on our side and I’m sure we’ll improve.”
Leclerc Believes Ferrari is Succeeding in Returning to Victory Contention at Every Grand Prix
“Yes, generally speaking. But I don’t want to dampen enthusiasm or draw premature conclusions.”
“The last race was quite close, as was the one before. But it’s also true that we have two circuits coming up, Monaco and Canada, which are quite particular, where the kerbs play a significant role. This might not showcase the strength of our car, so I think we need to wait a bit longer to understand exactly where we stand in terms of performance.”
“But we are confident in the progress made with our upgrades, and we have really closed the gap. I hope this will be enough to soon be on par with Red Bull, and that would be fantastic for Formula 1 in general.”
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