Bahrain GP 2022: How Charles Leclerc outsmarted Max Verstappen by ensuring he had DRS access

eclerc admitted to feeling vulnerable when the Safety car came out following Pierre Gasly's incident

Bahrain GP 2022: How Charles Leclerc outsmarted Max Verstappen by ensuring he had DRS access

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc won the race after starting from pole position, his first win since the 2019 Italian Grand Prix. His teammate Carlos Sainz finished the race in the second position. It was also Ferrari’s first win and 1–2 finish since the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix.

But the Monagesque was challenged by Red bull’s Max Verstappen with whom he shared a thrilling Wheel-to-wheel-duel with. During laps 17 to 19 of the Bahrain GP, Max and Charles fought closely with Dutchman claiming the lead on two occasions.

But Charles courageously fought back against the 2021 World Champion and reclaimed his race lead. Leclerc explained just how enjoyable it was to battle the reigning champion with the new 2022 cars.

Charles Leclerc wins 2022 season opener, Max Verstappen retires

Max Verstappen was forced to retire after an issue in his Power unit while the Dutchman was P2. Both Red Bulls scored no points as Sergio Perez retired in the last lap while he was in 3rd place gifting the spot to Hamilton. But Verstappen gave Leclerc a tough fight throughout the race.

Charles Leclerc wins Bahrain GP 2022
Charles Leclerc wins Bahrain GP 2022
It was tricky; it was nice though. It was on the limit, hard racing. But we would always give each other space, which was nice, and following him into Turn 2 was a bit more predictable than what I expected compared to what I had last year, so this was good.
Charles Leclerc said
I would always brake very early into Turn 1 to get DRS for Turn 4 and it worked out – three times in a row – so I could keep my lead. And it was always also very tricky because I was struggling with my energy [ERS] and had to manage that too.
Charles Leclerc added,

Leclerc admitted to feeling vulnerable when the Safety car came out following Pierre Gasly’s incident. The Frenchman’s AlphaTauri caught fire and endangered his lead in the race. But Leclerc was able to fend off Verstappen’s lunges.

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