Fury from Charles Leclerc at the end of the Las Vegas Grand Prix towards his teammate, Carlos Sainz.
With George Russell’s victory in Las Vegas and Max Verstappen clinching his fourth consecutive World Championship title, it’s time to assess the performance of the Italian team led by Team Principal Fred Vasseur. The Scuderia from Maranello arrived in Nevada with the goal of taking the lead in the Constructors’ Championship, surpassing McLaren, who were visibly struggling throughout the weekend.
However, things did not go as the team and the fans had hoped. Carlos Sainz finished on the podium, alongside the two British drivers from Brackley, while Charles Leclerc ended up behind the Spaniard. The result of the two Ferrari drivers delayed the Scuderia’s potential bid for the Constructors’ title until Qatar, where they are now 24 points behind McLaren.
At the end of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc was visibly angry in a radio communication with his race engineer Bryan Bozzi, during which he expressed frustration, blaming his own gentleness for the result—a comment that violated the latest controversial directives from the FIA regarding driver language.
Additionally, in an interview with Sky Sports F1 Italy, the Monegasque driver outlined the reasons for his discontent, primarily stemming from the overtaking move by Carlos Sainz after the pit stop: “I won’t go into detail, honestly. Why am I not happy? Because there are things we say to each other, and today they went a bit differently. It’s okay, in the end, we finished third and fourth. It doesn’t change anything for the team. For the Drivers’ Championship, I’m a bit disappointed because, obviously, I’m fighting with Norris. I know I have to rely on myself, that I need to improve in qualifying and do everything perfectly. From now on, I’ll focus on myself and try to maximize everything “.
Leclerc also mentioned that his struggles during the first stint on medium tires were decisive. Early on, he tried to close the gap to George Russell to dictate the pace of the race, but this strategy didn’t work out, despite the subsequent pit stop for soft tires, which ultimately proved to be a better performance on the Las Vegas track: “We lost a lot in the first stint. In the second and third stints, I think we were among the fastest, if not the fastest car. On the medium tires, I struggled a lot. The problem was that I didn’t get any warning before losing the front end. That’s how it went… ” Leclerc concluded.
Photo: Scuderia Ferrari HP.