Signs of anger were prominent on the star Charles The clerkFerrari driver at the end of the British Grand Prix For Formula 1Sunday, after he finished fourth and did not benefit from the crisis experienced by the general ranking leader Max Verstappen.
Leclerc was leading the race, a few laps before the end, but the entry of the protection car after the accident of Frenchman Esteban Ocon, the drivers entered the pits to change the tires, while the Ferrari driver did not stop due to the team’s choices.
After the return of the race, Leclerc was unable to hold on, losing first place quickly to his colleague Carlos Sainz, and despite resisting the attacks of Carlos Perez, “Red Bull” driver and Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, but he surrendered in the end and took fourth place, because of Ferrari’s choices.
Leclerc expressed his extreme anger at his team’s strategy, and he told the French channel “Info Sport”, on Monday, when he indicated that he was very angry, because the driver lost his first position because he was the only one who did not stop like the rest of the drivers to change the tires at the end of the race after entering a car. Safety, which deprived him of the win and paved the way for the brilliance of his colleague Sainz, who benefited from the handling of the team management, as the tires of Leclerc were worn compared to the rest of the competitors, which made the difference in the crucial laps.
And it is not the first time that the Ferrari team’s strategy is not suitable for its first star, as the team’s choices have caused a loss of many points since the beginning of the season, especially in determining the frame or the stopping date, which is what happened in the Monaco race, as it seems that team manager Binotto, does not He makes the right decisions in difficult situations, and he justified the decision not to stop Leclerc, that only one driver could change the tires, and Sainz was favored.
It can be said that the team’s mistake in the British Grand Prix missed Leclerc’s opportunity to return to the championship, given that Verstappen finished seventh and the opportunity was possible to earn valuable points to distribute the cards again in the competition for the title.
It was strange that Ferrari bet on Sainz, although he lost his hopes of winning the world championship, and it was better to change the tires of Leclerc, but the mistake that Mercedes made at the end of last season in the Abu Dhabi race, when Hamilton did not change the tires, unlike his Dutch tracker Verstappen, repeated it. His Ferrari team this season and in both cases Verstappen was the only beneficiary.