A disastrous race for Ferrari, with Charles Leclerc finishing in eighth place while Lewis Hamilton could only manage tenth.
A worse start to the season couldn’t have come for Ferrari. After yesterday’s horror qualifying session, the race went even worse with Charles Leclerc finishing in eighth place (after deliberately delaying his pit stop), while Lewis Hamilton finished in tenth, getting overtaken by Piastri in the final lap of the race.
Leclerc himself, at the end of the race, did not mince words in describing the Australian weekend. These were his words: ‘It was definitely a tough race, with several aspects to review and improve. From the outside, everything might seem simpler, but every situation has its own particularities. We know we struggle in these conditions, and we need to focus on that more than on other aspects. Today didn’t go well, but before talking about the team’s choices, I think the biggest mistake was mine when I lost the car in Turn 11, compromising the race and several positions. A third or fourth place was possible, which would have changed the perspective of our result.’
The Monegasque driver with the number 16 then added: ‘Now we just need to work. I was expecting more from this first race, but fortunately, we’ll be back on track in a few days and can make up for it. It’s crucial to react immediately: China isn’t an ideal track for us, we struggled there last year, but it’s a proper circuit and we need to do better. This has to be just a starting point.’
Photo: X Scuderia Ferrari
