Charles Leclerc Cautions against premature celebration as Ferrari’s tire woes persist

After starting the race on pole, Charles Leclerc came home in P2 to secure his third podium of the season.

Charles Leclerc Cautions against premature celebration as Ferrari’s tire woes persist

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc (Image credit: PlanetF1)

Ferrari’s recent showing in the Belgian Grand Prix has sparked a positive shift for the Italian squad. Charles Leclerc‘s impressive second-place finish indicates a resurgence for Ferrari following a challenging season start. More importantly, the tire-degradation issues that had plagued Ferrari this season so far have appeared to have diminished after Leclerc’s smooth drive at Spa this Sunday.

Charles Leclerc mentioned that it might be premature to conclude, but Ferrari had improved tire management in the last two or three races. The gap to the Red Bulls was attributed to their rivals’ superior speed, not tire performance, the Monegasque believes. Nevertheless, their tire degradation was manageable, and they controlled the pace against Mercedes. However, they acknowledged the need for vigilance during specific conditions to avoid tire-related struggles.

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“I think it’s a bit too early to say but it’s been two or three races where we are managing our tyres better,” he said. “I think today, this was definitely not the reason why we finished so far behind the Red Bulls. But in terms of tyre management, we didn’t have a huge degradation,” Charles Leclerc told Motorsport.com.

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Read more: Charles Leclerc labels Carlos Sainz’s Belgian GP DNF a ‘shame’

Ferrari’s strategy focused on keeping Lewis Hamilton behind

Charles Leclerc at the 2023 Belgium Grand Prix (Image credit: RacingNews365)

Charles Leclerc started the Belgian GP in second place ahead of Lewis Hamilton. As the race progressed, Hamilton skilfully maintained a close gap, seemingly awaiting an attack on Charles in the dying stages of the race. Although the Monegasque claimed Ferrari was merely just responding to Hamilton’s action during the race.

Leclerc stated that their strategy revolved around responding to Lewis’s actions behind them, prompting the Red Bull team to follow suit a lap later. With everyone reacting to one another’s moves, they adopted similar strategies. The main goal was to keep Lewis at bay throughout the race, and Leclerc felt they had him under control despite his competitive pace.

“Basically, we had to react to what Lewis was doing behind, which then the Red Bull had to react to us a lap later,” he said. “Our strategy was based on Lewis and trying to keep him behind during the whole race. He had a good pace, but I felt we had him under control,” Leclerc concluded.

Leclerc secured a podium finish at Spa-Francorchamps, trailing the Red Bull pair of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez on Sunday. His pole position resulted from Verstappen’s grid penalty for a new gearbox. After 12 season races, the Monegasque is placed P7 in the standings behind his teammate Carlos Sainz.

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