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Ferrari is determined to learn from the difficulties it faced when both of its cars were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix. Charles Leclerc acknowledges that a key priority for the team is to catch up to McLaren, which has shown considerable pace this season.
Although Leclerc’s teammate, Lewis Hamilton, won the sprint race in Shanghai, Ferrari believes this result may not reliably reflect their overall performance. The team anticipates that their showing at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix will be more representative of their capabilities, especially following a challenging weekend in China.
During the Chinese Grand Prix, Leclerc and Hamilton started in fifth and sixth place, respectively, and maintained a competitive positioning before being overtaken by Max Verstappen in the latter stages. Unfortunately for Ferrari, both drivers faced disqualification after Leclerc was found to be slightly underweight and Hamilton faced issues concerning illegal wear on his skid plank.
“Whenever mistakes occur, especially when they have such significant consequences, it’s important to learn from them,” Leclerc stated during the pre-race media engagements at Suzuka. “To have both cars exceed the regulations was a significant setback for us, especially considering the difficulties we have already faced earlier this season.”
Ferrari’s disqualifications underscore the inherent risks teams take by pushing their cars to the limits of technical regulations. Straying slightly over these boundaries can result in lost time and points, but adhering strictly to them comes with its own performance costs. In Hamilton’s case, disqualification seemed unavoidable given the circuit conditions, while Leclerc’s situation could have potentially been mitigated with better tire management during the cool-down lap.
“I believe we will take this experience to heart,” Leclerc added. “Events like these necessitate a thorough understanding of what went wrong and adjustments to our processes moving forward. It was a combination of factors that ultimately led to the insufficient margin we found ourselves in.”
The competition landscape in Formula 1 remains dynamic, particularly with regard to the established pecking order as teams like McLaren continue to excel. While the new ground-effect regulations have become more standardized, the performance discrepancies between teams remain notable. Closing these gaps involves more than merely tweaking setups; each car has certain performance limitations that must be reconciled.
“It’s always a challenge to unlock the maximum potential from a car,” Leclerc stated. “This season is certainly no exception. Our performance hasn’t been on par with McLaren, which is our primary concern.”
Despite the ongoing challenges, Leclerc remains optimistic about Ferrari’s prospects for improvement. “It’s about taking incremental steps to close the performance gap. I hope we can see that progress starting this weekend.”
Looking ahead, the teams continue to work on their car developments, although implementation of significant changes can take time, making it difficult to address performance shortcomings from the early season quickly. Ferrari remains focused on learning from the season’s experiences, with attention to how varying track conditions can impact performance. After Hamilton’s success in the sprint race, the team made strategic adjustments in preparation for the grand prix, aiming to enhance tire longevity.
“We observed substantial improvement in the sprint race in China, particularly with Lewis,” Leclerc remarked. “However, come race day, the performance reverted to what we had seen previously. This week, I expect our performance to align more closely with our achievements in the sprint rather than in Melbourne.”
Photos from Japanese GP – Thursday
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