Charles Leclerc takes blame for ‘wrong side’ of qualifying as F1 title race looms

Michelle Foster
Charles Leclerc with his head down

Charles Leclerc with his head down

Charles Leclerc admits he was on the “wrong side” in Abu Dhabi, the Ferrari driver down in 14th place when his P1 lap time was deleted in Q2.

It was a mistake that could yet be the final blow to Ferrari’s Constructors’ Championship hopes as it comes on the back of his 10-place grid penalty.

Charles Leclerc: I can only blame myself

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

Although Leclerc set the pace in FP1 at the Yas Marina circuit, as the temperature dropped on Friday night and the drivers moved onto the soft Pirelli tyres, so too did his pace.

But then came the big blow, a 10-place grid penalty as he took his sixth Energy Store for the season, thus exceeding the penalty-free limits.

Despite that he went into qualifying hoping for a P11 on the grid at best but it came to naught as he was caught out for exceeding track limits at Turn 1 in Q2 and lost his fastest lap time.

“It’s very difficult,” he told the media including PlanetF1.com of Turn 1. “It’s obviously very difficult, but it’s very difficult for everybody and I was on the wrong side of things in Q2 so I can only blame myself.”

He finished qualifying with the 14th fastest time which means he will start Sunday’s finale from the very back of the grid.

Leclerc though, is not giving up hope.

Ferrari trail McLaren by 21 points in the Constructors’ Championship meaning a 22-point swing is required to secure Ferrari’s first Constructors’ title since 2028.

“I believe in miracles,” said the eight-time Grand Prix winner. “Yeah, it makes our life very difficult, that’s for sure.

“But with the 10-place penalty, it was always going to be difficult, but I see an opportunity to do something very special, and I’ll do my best to do it. And I think, yeah, I’ll believe in it until the very last lap.

“Obviously, I don’t feel good after qualifying like that where we were a little bit better. It’s true that I don’t think I would have managed to beat the McLarens, they still were too strong, but we could have been fourth.

“So yeah, when it was either P15 or P20 and P15 is better than 20, and with my lap time deleted, it makes us start from P20. So we are not making our life any easier.

“However, it motivates me to do something very special tomorrow. My goal remains the same to win the Constructors’ Championship, and I still believe in it as much as I did yesterday even though on paper it’s going to be a lot more difficult.

“I believe in miracles. Yeah, it makes our life very difficult, that’s for sure. But with the 10-places penalty, it was always going to be difficult, but I see an opportunity to do something very special, and I’ll do my best to do it. And I think, yeah, I’ll believe in it until the very last lap.”

Leclerc believes he has both the race pace and tyre management to still challenge for a top position in Sunday’s race.

“The race pace was okay, but McLaren seem to be a lot stronger. But again, we’ve changed quite a bit the car since FP3 so I think we went in the right direction. And if anything, our tyre degradation is better than others, so I will expect to be in a good position.”

F1 2024: Team-mate head-to-head stats

👉F1 2024: Head-to-head qualifying record between team-mates

👉F1 2024: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates

But after a qualifying session in which seven different teams were inside the top ten wrapped up the year’s final qualifying, it begs the question what does 2025 hold for Formula 1?

Leclerc believes while Abu Dhabi’s qualifying was track-specific, he says it’s also a sign that the teams are closing the gap on one another.

“I think it’s more track-related for some teams, for some others it might be a sign of being on the right path,” he said. “I think we’ve been on the right path since the last few races. I think McLaren, Red Bull, we are all more or less there.

“Some others have been a bit more up and down, but yeah, it’s still exciting to see qualifying so close.”

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