“He was just a little bit faster,” Charles Leclerc finishes behind Max Verstappen after an incredibly tight qualifying session
Follow Us
Charles Leclerc
With the Friday running done, the grid for the sprint race is set. Max Verstappen starts on pole position for the third race this season, while Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz start just behind in 2nd and 3rd, with the top 3 only separated by 0.082s. Sergio Perez completed the second row with Sainz. During the final stage of qualifying, it was a tightly contested battle, with Charles Leclerc looking set to take another pole position.
Verstappen had gone with two yellow sectors, but he was just able to edge Charles Leclerc by 0.029s on his final run. The Mercedes duo looked strong like they were in the fight for pole position, but unfortunately for them, they both ended up crashing and causing red flags, which means that George Russell will be starting 5th, while Lewis Hamilton starts 10th.
Charles Leclerc would be relatively satisfied with the second spot on the grid, as Red Bull always seem to have the edge over their competitors in Austria. Most of all, Leclerc hopes for an ‘uneventful’ trouble-free race, as a clean race has eluded him for several weekends, and this in turn, has damaged his championship charge.
Also Read: Austrian GP 2022 Qualifying Results: Max Verstappen claims pole position in the Red Bull Ring
Charles Leclerc: “I just want to drive a clean race.”
In his post-qualifying interview, Charles Leclerc felt that there was not much in it, as was evident by the time sheets, the differences in the lap times of the top three were marginal. He said: “All three of us were very close to each other.”
He further elaborated: “On the last lap I struggled a little bit bringing the tires back after such a long time in the pits, but Max was just a little bit faster, so my congratulations to him.” Leclerc also expects an exciting sprint race on Saturday and certainly would be very happy to win his first one.
When asked about his mindset for the race, he said: “I just want to drive a clean race. There have been five races that have been a bit of a disaster for my side, so I just hope that everything goes well and that we can finally score the points we deserve.”
Charles Leclerc is well due for a clean weekend now. In the last 5 races, he has not even stood on the podium once and has retired twice, with his Montreal weekend being compromised by the consequences of those retirements, and the other two perhaps compromised by his team’s strategic errors. All this means he has only taken 34 points in the last 5 races, while his presumed rival, Max Verstappen has taken 96.
Stay Updated!
Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)