Ferrari, between Leclerc and Sainz after qualifying in Australia

Locklear VII, nose, in qualifications Melbourne. It’s not a good sign: nor is the Monaco’s base stance, which specializes in the lead even with ill-fitting cars. Nor what happened this morning in Australia between him and his team mate Carlos Sainz (5th on the grid) and with the whole team. Misunderstanding, confusion, request for clarification. Which led to a breach of the day that was set to be exploited, with the Red Bull coming off in the first quarter Sergio Perez. At least try to stay on the heels not of Verstappen, also impregnable in Albert Park, but at least of Mercedes and Aston Martin.

Leclerc-Sainz, what happened

Instead, in the red box, where there were already problems for a car that had so far fallen short of expectations, the opportunity was missed. But what happened? In the last attempt at qualifying, when the rain that soaked on Friday and also the last free sessions in the morning came back on track in the last 5 minutes, Leclerc did 1 warm-up lap while Sainz did 2 laps, moreover he left the garage across from Charles. Monegasque found his teammate in front throughout the first sector, upsetting him on his lap. The Spaniard was clearly trying, inadvertently, to warm up the tyres. In fact, neither one nor the other made improvements in the final time trial.

Leclerc: “We’ll have to see what happens”

Leclerc, who usually manages to find an extra edge in the qualifiers, other than the bizarre situation he’s found himself in, hasn’t been great. As soon as he got out of the car, his face strained, he explained: “I didn’t have any petrol. But we were afraid that the rain would arrive and we decided to do just one lap, not two. Unfortunately we missed a lot to be in front. Then we have to see with the team what happened with Sainz in the first sector in Q3, because it was obvious I had to push immediately after the first flying lap, while 2 did. I don’t know. We could have improved a little bit.”

Leclerc’s self-criticism

Maybe even just one location, on a track that’s hard to pass, won’t screw up. Even if Charles, who breathed colorfully in a radio message (“A Q3 of m….”), also acknowledges his responsibility: “I certainly have a little more racing car, but that doesn’t justify seventh place today. I should have done a job.” Better, and I should have managed everything better. I’m not particularly happy with the way I drove, the feeling in the car was very good, but I got it together too late.” also for Sainzwith an extra warm-up lap, it wasn’t any better: he had to slow down at different points to make way for those behind him, thus cooling the tyres: “When I started, I lost a few tenths in the first sector, and that cost me a place in the top 3. They told me he was behind me There were riders finishing with flying knees, but that was only the case for some, and the deceleration cost me a drop in tire temperature.”

Ferrari: “an incomplete era”

“An incomplete back” is a title Ferrari to their qualifications. team manager, Fred Vasseur, He explains to her this way: “Things didn’t go right for us. in Q3 We were nearing the end of the session and so we avoided doing the prep run with Charles, while Carlos couldn’t put together a lap, losing a few tenths in Turn 1, without which he could have been second or third. Instead, they would have a wall in front of the reds: Mercedes and Aston Martin in A battle to find a place on Earth While in the lead, Verstappen will be racing on his home planet.