Ferrari faces renewed scrutiny after costly strategy errors and Sainz’s double crash in a challenging São Paulo Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc finished fifth at the São Paulo Grand Prix, and the Ferrari driver believes his team didn’t make the right calls. He’s also surprised by the lack of performance in Brazil, citing suboptimal setups as a key factor.
“It was a very long race with many strategic decisions. With the first one, we were on the wrong side by pitting. The team thought we could come out ahead of Bearman and Hamilton, but we ended up behind them,” Leclerc lamented.
“Then the red flag came out, and we lost quite a few positions. After that, it was about surviving until the end. We didn’t have the ideal setup, so we’ll need to look into that as we had a lot of degradation.”
While disappointed with the result, he’s somewhat reassured by limiting the damage against McLaren and even Red Bull. “Frustrated, yes and no. On one hand, it could have been much worse with McLaren having tremendous pace this weekend.”
“At the end of the day, the goal is the Constructors’ title. We’re doing a better job than them, but we can’t settle for that. It wasn’t a good weekend; we weren’t as competitive as we wanted to be.”
“We expected it though—we thought Red Bull would be very strong, even if it’s mainly Max making the difference, but they were stronger than us. McLaren was also much stronger, yet we only lost four points in the Constructors’, which is our main focus. So, all things considered, it’s not too bad.”
Finally, the Monegasque driver congratulated Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon for securing a double podium for Alpine F1 at Interlagos: “Very happy for Pierre, very happy for Esteban as well, and for Alpine overall.”
“It hasn’t been an easy season; I speak often with Pierre and Esteban, and they deserve this. They drove an outstanding race with smart strategic choices. But beyond the good strategy calls, the pace was there—they were genuinely very quick.”
Carlos Sainz ended his race in the wall following a mistake during morning qualifying: “It’s been a bad day, a bad Sunday, from qualifying through to the race. Starting from the pit lane, it’s nearly impossible to make much progress. Overtaking is very challenging, and visibility is limited at the back of the pack.”
“I made two mistakes, which is far from ideal, and I’m sorry for the whole team. At the same time, today, on the wet track and really throughout the season, the car has been very difficult to drive, and that’s cost us a few races.”
“The fact is, the tyres don’t suit us, and the setup could certainly have been better. But I stress, this year, we haven’t been quick in any wet sessions. That said, the last three races should be dry, so it shouldn’t be a concern for us.”
The Spaniard received a new engine in preparation for Las Vegas and its long straights: “Yes, it’s positive, and that’s why we went for it. Obviously, I would’ve preferred to start 13th today, knowing I could have snuck into the points.”
“But we decided to sacrifice the start from the pit lane to benefit from this engine for the final three races. I hope it pays off; in Vegas, we should have some opportunities, and then the last two will be more McLaren-favourable circuits. So we have to approach them with ambition, but also realism.”
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Sainz’s Double Crash Adds Pressure on Ferrari’s Season Goals Sainz’s Double Crash Adds Pressure on Ferrari’s Season Goals
