Charles Leclerc: Ferrari driver says team ‘have learned a few things’ in bid to get ‘upper hand’ on Mercedes
Mercedes and Ferrari are set for a big battle for second place in the Constructors’ Championship, with six Formula 1 events remaining in 2023; watch all sessions of the Qatar GP on Sky Sports F1 from October 6 to 8, when Max Verstappen could become champion on Saturday
Last updated: 09/29/23 12:14 PM
Charles Leclerc believes Ferrari has “learned a few things” that could give them the “upper hand” over Mercedes for the rest of the season.
Ferrari are 20 points behind Mercedes in the Constructors’ Championship heading into the Qatar Grand Prix, after both teams scored the same number of points last time out in Suzuka.
Race pace and tire degradation had been a weakness for Ferrari, but since the summer break they seemed to have made a breakthrough, taking points from Mercedes at Monza and Singapore.
“Mercedes is strong, especially in the races. In Japan they put a bit of pressure on us at the end by splitting the cars. In qualifying it is a bit more inconsistent, so it will be a very exciting battle,” said Leclerc. told Sky Sports F1.
“We’re a little more inconsistent in the race, they’re a little more inconsistent in qualifying. But I feel like we learned a few things over the weekend that will hopefully give us the upper hand for the rest.” of the season.”
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Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were both relatively happy with their performances at the Japanese GP.
Ferrari is the only non-Red Bull team to win this year, following Carlos Sainz’s stunning victory on the streets of Singapore earlier this month.
Although not on the podium a week later at Suzuka, Ferrari’s fourth and sixth were still a big improvement on their pace on high-speed circuits in the first half of the season.
“If you look at the first few races of the season, tire management was not always our greatest skill,” said team boss Frederic Vasseur.
“So when we came to Suzuka with this track temperature we were a bit at risk, but in the end I think we did well on that side. The strategy was well managed and we did well, so a clear step forward from of the competition.” to the start of the season.”
The races have remained live on Sky Sports F1 in 2023
| Date | Grand prize | British race start time |
|---|---|---|
| October 6-8 | GP Qatar* | 6 p.m |
| October 20-22 | United States GP* | 8 p.m |
| October 27-29 | GP of Mexico City | 8 p.m |
| November 3-5 | GP of São Paulo* | 5 p.m |
| November 17-19 | GP of Las Vegas | 6 hours |
| November 24-26 | Abu Dhabi GP | 1 o’clock in the afternoon |
| *Sprint weekend |
McLaren was Red Bull’s closest challenger in Japan as the team achieved a double podium for the first time in two years, with Lando Norris finishing second and Oscar Piastri taking a first F1 podium.
The Losail International Circuit in Qatar is also expected to suit McLaren due to its high-speed nature, which will underline the big steps the Woking team has made since the start of the season when they struggled to score points.
However, Vasseur is not surprised by McLaren’s recent rise, as he pointed out that Norris qualified third at the Spanish Grand Prix in early June.
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A look back at some of the funniest moments from the Japanese Grand Prix, including Ted Kravtitz’s fight with a vending machine and a Guenther Steiner superfan!
“I think they had a big problem at the beginning, but then they recovered quite quickly because they were on the second row even in Barcelona,” Vasseur said.
“I think it was Max, Carlos, Lando and Lewis on the second row, they were already competitive. And this kind of track is probably better suited for their car than for us. But it is certainly not just a matter of pure potential, it is also a matter of driving characteristics.
“Every time you take a step forward, you help the driver also take a step forward. This can be a kind of snowball effect. Still a small step compared to Red Bull.”
When can you only watch the Qatar GP live on Sky Sports F1?
Thursday October 5
- 4 p.m.: Drivers’ press conference
Friday October 6
- 2:00 PM: Qatar GP Practice One (session starts 2:30 PM)
- 5:30 PM: Qatar GP qualifying build-up
- 6 p.m.: Qatar GP qualifying
Saturday October 7
- 1:30 PM: Sprint Shootout setup
- 2 p.m.: Sprint shootout
- 5:30 PM: Sprint build-up
- 6:30 PM: SPRINT
Sunday October 8
- 4.30 pm: Grand Prix Sunday: build-up of the Qatar GP
- 6:00 PM: THE QATAR GRAND PRIZE
- 8 p.m.: Checkered flag: Qatar GP response
Will Max Verstappen complete his third world championship at the first attempt at the Qatar GP? Watch every session of the sprint weekend live on Sky Sports F1 from October 6 to 8. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW. Cancel at any time