Charles Leclerc finished third in the Mexican Grand Prix, risking putting his Ferrari into the wall in the closing laps.
It was a bittersweet third place for Leclerc, but valuable in the Constructors’ Championship race. The Monegasque Ferrari driver crossed the line behind Sainz and Norris, being overtaken by the Brit in the final moments of the race.
It was a largely boring race, as shown by the management imposed by the engineers due to temperatures and fuel, while the final laps were risky, especially with a long run at the last corner that allowed Lando Norris to take second place. This mistake could have cost Leclerc dearly, as he struggled with the lapped cars of Stroll and Lawson, almost putting his Ferrari into the wall.
Leclerc commented on his race: “It wasn’t a nerve-wracking race, but rather boring. When you’re two seconds behind the leader at the start and then have to manage brakes, fuel, and temperatures, it’s a bit frustrating because you want to push more. But we finished first and third; I don’t think we could have done more. The McLaren was really strong in the last stint, and I think we were lucky with Max’s situation at the start of the race, which everyone saw. In the end, we were very strong; Carlos was perfect from the first practice session, while I struggled to recover after Friday. I’m disappointed with my performance.”
A third place that could be crucial for the Constructors’ Championship, as Ferrari is now only 29 points behind McLaren Lelcerc added: “I felt more confident during the race; I believe we had the pace, but I lost time due to management. It was difficult to achieve more than a third place with the fastest lap. We’ll see how it goes at the end of the year; hopefully, it will be enough to win the Constructors’ Championship.
As for the mistake at the end? You don’t have much time to think in those moments: you focus on recovering the car, and I knew I had to exit that corner well because Lando was very close. I tried to push as hard as I could and took a risk; I knew there was some space, even if it wasn’t much. I lost it but managed to recover.”
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari