‘Leclerc has screwed up enough himself, he should be meek’

Michelle Foster
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc swaps full wet tyres for intermediates. Monaco May 2022

Ferrari mechanics immediately after Charles Leclerc swaps full wet tyres for intermediates. Monaco May 2022

Rather than raging at Ferrari for their strategy mistake in Monaco, Ralf Schumacher says Charles Leclerc should be “meek” after all the team has “done less wrong” than he has.

Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix, got off to a perfect start for pole-sitter and local driver Leclerc as he led ahead of his team-mate Carlos Sainz.

Building up a five-second buffer over the Spaniard, it looked as if Leclerc was finally going to put his Monaco hoodoo to rest.

And then it struck.

As the track dried out and those further behind who had swapped to intermediate tyres began to show pace, Ferrari debated pitting their drivers.

Sainz told the team no while Leclerc pulled in to swap his full wets for inters.

Three laps later, having already lost places in his first pit stop, the Monégasque was back into the pits in a double-stack for slick tyres. He was the second car in that as Sainz was ahead of him on the track.

The beeps came thick and fast.

As the pit stops played out, Red Bull also going for the double-stack, Sergio Perez was leading ahead of Sainz, Max Verstappen and Leclerc was off the podium in fourth place.

He was unable to recovery and after the race, although having calmed down a lot, spoke of Ferrari’s errors.

Former driver turned pundit Schumacher was quick to jump on Leclerc’s.

“He’s screwed up enough himself, so he should be meek,” he told Sky Deutschland. “Things happen.

“You win together and lose together. So far, the team has done less wrong than he has.”

Earlier this season Leclerc cost himself a podium at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix when he spun while trying to chase down second place, he finished P6 that day.

But while Ferrari got it wrong with Leclerc on Sunday, another former driver Timo Glock says Red Bull deserve praise for getting it right.

“The calm that was there with Red Bull’s strategy was missing at Ferrari,” said the German pundit. “That cost them the win.

“You could hear how much panic there was on the radio.

 

“I didn’t understand why they didn’t continue with this pace or reacted earlier. You didn’t know where to go with Charles.

“In the end you made the wrong decision and that’s how Leclerc’s curse was upheld in Monaco.”

Sunday’s result saw Leclerc lose more ground to Verstappen in the title race, the Ferrari driver now nine points off the pace. Sainz remains P5 but has closed the gap to George Russell to just one point.

 

Ferrari cost themselves the race win

Ferrari had the makings of a perfect Grand Prix, but the rain mixed things up, and ultimately they ruined the race for themselves.