Formula 1 Driver Charles Leclerc Analyzes Ferrari’s Performance at the Chinese Grand Prix

After a surprising victory by Lewis Hamilton in the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc believes that the team’s qualifying performance is a more accurate reflection of their current Formula 1 standing. Despite Hamilton’s success on Friday, neither he nor Leclerc were able to replicate such a performance in qualifying for the grand prix.

Lewis Hamilton’s Sprint Race Victory – An Outlier?

Hamilton sprung a surprise on Friday when he took pole position for the sprint, which he then converted into his first victory for Ferrari. However, neither Hamilton nor Leclerc were able to replicate such a performance in qualifying for the grand prix, with Hamilton starting fifth and Leclerc alongside – the pair having started seventh and eighth in Melbourne with the order reversed.

Despite underperforming in Australia and Hamilton’s somewhat shock Shanghai sprint success, Leclerc feels Ferrari has now levelled out with its qualifying showing. “This afternoon I think the potential was just not there,” he said. “The overall grip was just not there, and I think in Australia I felt like we didn’t do a great job in qualifying, and we were further away than what we thought but, if we had put everything together, I think we were expecting to be three tenths off.”

Challenges Faced by Leclerc in the Chinese Grand Prix Qualifying

Leclerc started the sprint in fourth but finished a place further back, having been overtaken by George Russell and then struggled to find a way past the Mercedes as his tyres suffered. “This morning we had good pace in the car, especially towards the end of the stint, but being in dirty air is always trickier, so I had wished for a better quali,” Leclerc added.

The Ferrari driver acknowledged that tyre management looked good, but he struggled with being in dirty air while Hamilton had good pace in free air. “We just need to try and find free air from where we start,” Leclerc said. “This is going to be a bit tricky because, starting P5 and P6, we’ve got quite a few cars in front, so to find free air is never easy. But we’ll try our best and hopefully our race pace is better than the guys around.”

Hamilton’s Perspective on Qualifying Performance

Hamilton had entered qualifying hopeful of repeating his success from Friday but feels changes to the set-up left his Ferrari more difficult to drive. “We started really optimistic naturally, but then we made just a couple of small changes, tweaks to the car, and it really put the car on a knife-edge,” he said.

Hamilton acknowledged that the wind picked up a little bit, making the car trickier to handle. “I think the wind picked up a little bit as well, so the car was just trickier today. It was harder to put laps together,” he said. Hamilton added that the car had a different balance from one corner to the next and that he wanted a car that was more predictable.

Despite the challenges faced in qualifying, both drivers are looking forward to tomorrow’s race and hope to improve their positions. Photos from Chinese GP – Sprint Race & Qualifying can be found on our website.