Charles Leclerc laments ‘disappointing’ Bahrain GP Pole position loss to Max Verstappen despite being the fastest driver in Qualifying

Charles Leclerc put in the fastest lap in Q2 during Qualifying. However the Monegasque still missed out on Pole position due to 0.228s trail to Max Verstappen in Q3.

Charles Leclerc laments ‘disappointing’ Bahrain GP Pole position loss to Max Verstappen despite being the fastest driver in Qualifying

Charles Leclerc [L] Max Verstappen [R] (images via IMAGO)

The 2024 Formula 1 season has officially begun with the qualifying session of Bahrain GP being concluded. Max Verstappen secured pole position for the first race of the season in Bahrain. Following the Dutchman, Charles Leclerc finished P2 in the qualifying session and missed out on the pole position by a mere gap of 0.228s from the session leader.

Hence, the Monegasque put forth his disappointment from the entire session and how he barely missed the pole position. Regardless the driver accepted how the team was in a better place from the previous season. Leclerc had DNF’ed from the 2023 version of Bahrain GP despite qualifying in the third position. Hence a P2 qualifying for the 2024 campaign wasn’t the worst result for the Ferrari driver.

I'm a bit disappointed. We did a good qualifying bit it's been tricky until now. We are in a vetter place than a year ago.
Leclerc said, as reported by @JunaidSamodien_/X.
YouTube video

Apart from this, the 26-year-old hinted at how he was faster than Pole-sitter Verstappen in the Q2 session and scored a faster lap than the Dutchman’s Q3 lap time. Regardless, using the used tires for the Q3 session inadvertently sabotaged Leclerc’s qualifying session. Hence, this was also the reason behind the Monegasque merely missing out on the pole position for the first race of the season.

In Q2 I think I did more or less the lap time that Max did in Q3, it was in the car but I think we lost a bit of rhythm in Q3 on used tyres.

Charles Leclerc mentioned how Red Bull is still ahead by quite a bit

The Red Bulls have developed yet another dominant chassis for the 2024 campaign in Formula 1. Hence, multiple people like Lewis Hamilton accepted Milton Keynes’s likely dominance this season as well. Leclerc was hopeful of great pace from the SF24 developed by Ferrari for the 2024 season. The Monegasque previously mentioned how the car didn’t put forth any ‘unpleasent surprises’.

Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc (Via IMAGO)
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc (Via IMAGO)

However, with Red Bull’s dominant pace, the 26-year-old accepted the team’s fate for the season. Leclerc was confident in Maranello’s improvement in pace from the previous season. However, the driver raised suspicions over the chances of the Italian team against Milton Keynes down the season. Leclerc asserted that the Red Bulls were quite ahead in terms of pace.

I'm confident we did a step forward [in race trim] but we really think Red Bull are still ahead by quite a bit in the race

Regardless of RB’s dominant pace, the team hasn’t given up just yet. The Bahrain GP is just the beginning of the great circus. Hence, Maranello would definitely showcase great improvement down the season. Additionally, during Carlos Sainz‘s last season on the team, he would also push extra to achieve great results within the team.

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