Charles Leclerc’s ‘struggles’ end up being MEANINGLESS as he gets demoted to P6 at Monaco GP qualifying

Charles Leclerc who qualified third on the grid behind Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen will start P6 after a penalty for impeding.

Charles Leclerc’s ‘struggles’ end up being MEANINGLESS as he gets demoted to P6 at Monaco GP qualifying

Charles Leclerc at the Monaco GP,2023 (Credits: SBNation.com)

The qualifying session on the streets of Montecarlo has once again delivered a truly remarkable and exhilarating experience. Max Verstappen narrowly prevented Charles Leclerc from securing three consecutive pole positions at his home Grand Prix. Ultimately, the Monegasque driver was qualified third on the grid for tomorrow’s race. But all his efforts have gone in vain as he was awarded a three place grid drop penalty.

The closing moments of Q3 provided an exhilarating spectacle, keeping us on the edge of our seats. Drivers relentlessly set provisional pole times, building up the tension. Initially, Charles Leclerc held his ground, but then Fernando Alonso eclipsed him, only to be overtaken by the reigning World champion, Max Verstappen. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBFCpHe-D7s&pp=ygUZY2hhcmxlcyBsZWNsZXJjIG1vbmFjbyBncA%3D%3D

Loic Duval, a French DTM racer, conducted the post-qualifying interviews. He asked the third-place man’s verdict on the qualifying, and Charles went on to say, “I am not satisfied with P3, but on the other hand, we need to look [at] the situation with the car.” the Monegasque added, “It was a very tricky qualifying, weekend for me. Especially, I struggled a lot with the car. We struggled a lot on the bumps compared to the other cars.”

Charles is donning a stunning-looking race suit for his home race. The suit represents the colors of his flag. He indeed had issues with the ride height and his car bottoming out. But, he says that he felt more alive in the qualifying and was a bit more at ease with the car. He added that he is happy that the Ferraris were closer to the pole position but explained, “I’d prefer to be first, of course.”

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Charles Leclerc asserts that he will give it full beans for the race tomorrow despite a tough Saturday

Charles Leclerc, at the Monaco GP
Charles Leclerc, at the Monaco GP (Credits: PlanetF1)

Leclerc found himself in a precarious situation as he obstructed Lando Norris during his flying lap inside the tunnel. Charles was on the racing line and Lando had no where to go, and had to abort his lap. With the clock being ticked out, the Briton had no chance of another final run. The penalty now marks the continuation of his “Monaco Curse” for the sixth consecutive year in runnng.

Just moments before Alonso and Verstappen outshone him, Leclerc had been on the path to emulate the legendary Ayrton Senna by securing three consecutive pole positions. He had a tricky car to drive and despite pulling a great lap out of it, it all meant worthless with the penalty. And given the track’s near impossible overtaking chances, it is going to be a tough race for the home hero.

Twelve months ago, the race on the streets of Principality was won by Sergio Perez, who started the race in third. It was a wet race, and the forecast says we are in for a repeat of it. Hinting at this, Duval asked Leclerc what he needed to do to replicate the Mexican tomorrow, and Charles said, “I guess a bit more luck from other years.” He added, “With rain anything is possible, and I’ll go for it anyway and let’s see where we end up.”

The grid for the Monaco GP is all set for tomorrow, and with overtaking being notoriously tricky, all eyes will be set on the strategy. Charles hadn’t had a great start to the season, and the penalty has surely hampered his hopes for the rest. He now stands seventh in the standings, with only 34 points and a podium to his name. It remains to be seen if Charles and Ferrari can outdo Aston Martin and Red Bull in the race. 

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