Charles once again experienced frustration at home, where he could never win. The Scuderia called him to the pits at the same moment as Carlos Sainz and the Monegasque exploded in anger
Charles Leclerc’s fury against the strategy of the Ferrari team, which hurt him at the Monaco Grand Prix. They called him to the pits at the same moment as his partner, Carlos Sainz
No case, Charles Leclerc no prophet in his land and he still can’t win a race in Monaco. He did not manage to do it in the promotional categories nor in the Formula 1 . Whether due to his own mistakes or those of others, the 24-year-old pilot cannot break the curse on him. This Sunday he experienced another frustration as he started from the pole positions, led the race, but a serious strategy error by Ferrari prevented him from returning to the track in a position to fight for victory and the driver expressed his fury over the radio /b>.
The race started an hour later due to the drizzle before the race started and for safety reasons the drivers could change tires and apply wet compounds. But the puddles that were in various sectors of the street circuit also delayed activity in the Principality, whose asphalt, being used daily by street vehicles, is not like that of a racetrack, with better drainage and more grip on the track.< /p>
Once the race started, Leclerc went ahead and as the asphalt was drying up, his team called him to the pits on lap 17 to put intermediate tires for rain, a plan that the majority chose so that their cars have better grip and therefore , speed. Charles lost the lead, which was left in the hands of his partner, Carlos Sainz.
* Leclerc’s complaint on the radio after the stop in the pits in which he lost time
Although Leclerc was also behind Sergio “Checo” Pérez(Red Bull) and the nerves grew in the Monegasque runner. Not only that, but he was also ahead of his rival for the title, Max Verstappen(Redbull). However, the worst came on lap 22, at the same moment that Sainz had his tires changed and Leclerc was called. When the Scuderia engineers realized his mistake and yelled at Leclerc, “stay out, stay out!” But the Monegasque was already inside the internal lane and when he arrived at his garage he found the Spaniard’s Ferrari in front of him, which made him lose time in the pits…
The Ferrari’s bewilderment was total and Charles gave a deafening shout: “Shit, shit! Why did they do this? (first video). The two Ferrari drivers were given the hard rubber compound for dry surfaces, another point that caught their attention, since it would take them longer to get the best grip on the track.
Leclerc returned to the track in fourth place and knew that once again he was not going to be able to win against his people, with the aggravating circumstance of having started on pole position. There the Monegasque exploded and made it known live and direct in a talk on the radio with his team: “What happened?” Charles shouted. “No words, no words… Oh, oh, oh…” (second video), he continued.
It was a mistake that cost Ferrari dearly, as it didn’t just lose the win. In addition, the Monegasque criticized that his team rushed to put rubber for dry floors. “It was too early to put the dry ones on. We put the intermediates, but we lost a position. Then there was a misunderstanding, I found Carlos in front. There were a lot of wrong decisions and at your home race, it’s hard to digest”, Leclerc declared after the race.
Ferrari comes from high to low in the season, although it shows that its car, the F1-75, is on a par with Red Bull’s RB18. The Maranello squad lost the lead in the Constructors’ World Championship for a few dates and in the previous competition in Spain, Verstappen snatched the vanguard in the Drivers’ contest from Leclerc. In addition, the Dutchman stretched his difference from 6 to 9 points over the Monegasque.
Checo Pérez took the victory in Monaco and Charles finished fourth this Sunday when he could have won at home, something he never achieved either in his time in lower categories such as Formula 3, Formula 2 or since he debuted in F1 in 2018. In 2021 he took pole positions , but at the end of qualifying he had a blow that damaged the transmission of his car. The error was confirmed by Ferrari on Sunday when he went out on track and failed to start. Now, the misunderstanding of his team generated a new frustration.