“Not in the fight,” Charles Leclerc rules out Dutch GP triumph after MEDIOCRE Friday running

Charles Leclerc managed a disappointing P13 and P9 finish in the practice sessions at the Zandvoort circuit.

“Not in the fight,” Charles Leclerc rules out Dutch GP triumph after MEDIOCRE Friday running

Charles Leclerc (via IMAGO)

After Friday’s Zandvoort running, Charles Leclerc is not very optimistic about Ferrari’s chances. The outfit managed a best fourth-place finish in FP1 courtesy of Carlos Sainz, and it slipped to ninth place in FP2 with Leclerc.

The SF-24 did not look anywhere near the kind of pace the lights of Mercedes, McLaren, and Red Bull were able to produce. Moreover, in FP2, Ferrari was outclassed by even midfield teams like Aston Martin and Haas.

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Keeping everything in view, Charles Leclerc gave a damning verdict post FP2.

FS Video
Tough! As expected, I would say. We don’t quite have the pace of the guys in front, unfortunately. I think it’s better than what it looks like on the timesheet at the end of the day, but still not quite in the fight for the win, for sure. There’s quite a bit of work to do still. That’s what we are doing, but I hope it will pay off soon.
Charles Leclerc via F1

The 26-year-old driver has sounded very dejected after his team’s Friday outing in Zandvoort. While he has ruled Ferrari out of the fight for the win, he is hoping for major improvements going ahead into the 2024 campaign.

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Charles Leclerc will try to do ‘something special’ in qualifying

While Charles Leclerc does not see Ferrari fighting for the win, he is going to try his best to pull off a super lap in qualifying. Like the one, he pulled at the Belgian Grand Prix before the summer break.

Charles Leclerc (via IMAGO)
Charles Leclerc (via IMAGO)

Interestingly, rain is also expected to play a role during the qualifying session.

I will try to do something special in quali, but we are speaking of gaps at the moment that are a bit too big to do something special. If we manage to get within two, three-tenths, maybe there is something to be done. If not, I predict a difficult weekend for us.
Charles Leclerc via the same interview

The Ferrari Formula 1 team is currently in third place in the Constructors Championship. The ongoing event is going to be about damage limitation for them and considering this, it will be fascinating to see how well the outfit will be able to perform during the main 72-lap race. Leclerc and Co. would ideally prefer to end their Zandvoort weekend in the top six with both cars.

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