When the grip is not ideal, and it becomes crucial to exploit the last centimeter before the barriers, Leclerc has something extra. The thing has been known for some time, only the umpteenth confirmation has arrived in Las Vegas. Charles’ twenty-third pole did not come as a surprise, the ninety minutes of Friday’s free practice session were enough to highlight important potential. “To be honest, I felt confident from the first lap in FP1 – admitted Leclerc – the car was fantastic”.
Even on a decidedly positive evening, Charles wanted to underline how his two laps launched in Q3 were not all that exceptional. “I gave my best in Q2 – he explained – I think it hasn’t happened to me for a long time to put together laps like that, but in Q3 I left a few tenths lying around”.
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-23
Leclerc probably would have liked to dig a deeper gap between himself and his opponents, but the substance would not have changed. SF23 confirmed what it had already highlighted in Baku and Singapore, but in Las Vegas Leclerc’s added value increased the margin over the rest of the group even more than expected.
The compromise found by the Scuderia’s engineers worked best, and both Leclerc and Sainz managed to start the fast lap with the tires perfectly in the window. “It was a fundamental aspect, especially in the first sector – confirmed Charles – it was the biggest challenge of the qualification, we knew it and we prepared ourselves”.
Photo by: Erik Junius
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-23
The two Ferrari drivers obtained the best results in the first section of the circuit, after Verstappen had stood out in that sector in the FP3 session. “In the last free practice session we struggled a lot on the first lap with new tires – clarified Leclerc – we understood and solved the problem, a really good team job was done”.
This was the key that led Ferrari to conclude the first qualifying sessions held on the new Las Vegas circuit with a “1-2”, now the ball passes to race management in view of the 50 laps scheduled for tomorrow.
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-23
In light of the results of qualifying, we remain disappointed by the ten-place penalty that Sainz will have to pay. For Carlos, relegating from second to twelfth position on the starting grid is not a good prospect, and for Ferrari the prospect of starting the race with Verstappen placed on the front row is not the best news.
“I’m still angry about what happened yesterday – admitted Carlos – we’ll see how the start goes, and then the big question will be tire management. If there is a good pace, there is no shortage of overtaking opportunities on this track, I know that a comeback race awaits me, it won’t be easy, but let’s see.”
Leclerc has already gone from optimism on Saturday to frustration on Sunday on several occasions, but in Las Vegas there seems to be greater confidence ahead of the 50 laps scheduled for tomorrow. “Obviously we know that Red Bull will be very strong in terms of race pace – explained Charles – but so far this weekend has given us some positive signs even when we ran with a full tank of fuel. Let’s say better results than other races. I hope we can turn the pole position into a victory.”
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