Charles Leclerc blames mixed weather conditions for Austrian GP sprint race failure

After receiving a three-place penalty, Charles Leclerc had to settle for 12th place at the Austrian sprint race.

Charles Leclerc blames mixed weather conditions for Austrian GP sprint race failure

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (Image credit: WTF1)

Charles Leclerc admitted struggling in the mixed conditions of the Austrian Grand Prix Sprint, lamenting being “all over the place.” Before the race, he received a three-place grid penalty for impeding, placing him ninth. Despite efforts, Leclerc couldn’t pass Esteban Ocon and Alex Albon on the drying track. Switching to Slick tires late in the race led to a further setback, ultimately resulting in a 12th-place finish.

Charles Leclerc told the media that currently, he was struggling like crazy whenever it was half dry and half wet with slicks. He also said that he was completely off the pace at the sprint race in Australia. He further mentioned that they needed to understand why they found themselves in those conditions for three races and why he kept struggling.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBRyDkoXB-I

“At the moment, I’m struggling like crazy whenever it’s half dry, half wet with slicks; I’m just completely off the pace. So, we need to understand because now it’s three races in a row that we find ourselves in those conditions, and I keep struggling,” Leclerc said.

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Also read: Charles Leclerc’s 3-Place grid penalty exposes Ferrari’s communication failure at the Austrian Sprint

Charles Leclerc’s optimism rests on weather conditions for a potential podium

Charles Leclerc attributes the failure in the Austrian sprint race to the challenging mixed weather conditions.

Charles Leclerc had a strong position in Friday’s qualification but couldn’t maintain it in the Austrian GP Sprint race on Saturday. Despite an average qualification, he failed to earn points in the race. However, after qualifying P2 for the main race, Leclerc believes his podium chances rely on the weather conditions.

Leclerc stated that he expected Red Bull and Max to be stronger and said that a podium was another story. He mentioned that they were strong in full dry or full wet conditions and expressed feeling good in such conditions. However, he also acknowledged that they were struggling in the in-between conditions.

“A podium, yes. For the win is another story as I expect Red Bull and Max to be stronger, but a podium yes. If it’s full dry or full wet, I know that in those conditions we are strong, and I feel good. But it’s more in these in-between conditions that we are struggling,” said Leclerc.

It will be intriguing to observe whether Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz can maintain their positions on the podium, considering they start from P2 and P3. In the case of Leclerc, he requires these points to narrow the distance to his teammate. Closing the gap to Max Verstappen, however, seems a little out of reach.

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