Formula 1: Nightmare weekend for Ferrari
Charles Leclerc / Ferrari
The Styrian Grand Prix on July 12th was marked by two Ferraris pulling out on the first lap. After a collision between Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel, for which the Monegasque blames himself, both racers were forced to withdraw.
The season is not looking good for Ferrari. After a bad qualifying session (10th for Sebastian Vettel and 14th for Charles Leclerc), the race on Austria’s Spielberg circuit turned into a nightmare on the first lap at turn 3. After attempting a dangerous manoeuvre, the Monegasque driver collided with his teammate Sebastian Vettel. The result was a rear spoiler ripped off for Vettel and the entire of Leclerc’s floor destroyed, which led to the two Italian single-seaters dropping out.
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“It’s my fault,” said Leclerc
“Clearly, this is my fault. Today I made an error, quite simply,” said Charles Leclerc on Canal+. “On top of that, it’s not the time. We have to take the opportunities we have; today it could have been one, even if I’m not sure we had the performance to go for big points. I tried anyway, I told myself that if it worked out, we’d gain four or five places, but it clearly didn’t work out. I was stupid and I’ll learn.” As soon as he got out of his single-seater, the Monegasque was quick to apologise to his German teammate.
I am disappointed in myself. I'm sorry but being sorry is not enough. Seb hasn't got any faults today. I've let the team down after them working a whole week to bring the updates early. Too eager to gain those places in the first lap. I will learn from it.
— Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) July 12, 2020
At the end of this difficult weekend, team manager Mattia Binotto insisted on the importance of staying united. “When you start in the middle of the grid you know that a lot can happen,” he told the team. The Grand Prix ended with a Mercedes double (1st place for Lewis Hamilton, 2nd for Valtteri Bottas) and a third place for Max Verstappen.
The third race of the season will take place at the Hungaroring racetrack in Hungary on July 19th.