Toto Wolff praises Charles Leclerc’s sportsmanship
Charles Leclerc attempted a strategy to move Ferrari ahead of Mercedes in the constructors' standings. However, he did not resort to unsporting means, an attitude appreciated by Toto Wolff.
The constructors’ championship was undecided until the end. With AlphaTauri’s late-season comeback and the Mercedes – Ferrari battle, the season, largely dominated by Red Bull, provided a bit of a duel among the other rivals. The second place in the championship was decided in the last race of the season in Abu Dhabi.
In order to secure a victory for Ferrari, Charles Leclerc attempted a strategy aiming to let Sergio Perez pass him and establish a gap of over five seconds (as he was penalized) from George Russell, who was in 4th place.
Leclerc did not use any unfair techniques
The strategy ultimately did not work. Sergio Perez didn’t have the necessary time to distance himself from the Mercedes driver. In order to widen this gap, Charles Leclerc had even considered slowing down George Russell in the final sector. However, he didn’t want to take any additional risks. After the Monegasque changed his mind, Toto Wolff congratulated his opponent’s sportsmanship and fair play.
« We arrived this weekend slightly behind when we saw Ferrari’s performances in the last races », said the Mercedes manager. « We have two guys fighting at the front and I think George’s driving was impeccable, obviously managing the gaps at the end. The battle with Ferrari is a great fight between these two big brands, a team that we greatly respect, and Charles drove like a true sportsman in the end. »
No success for Ferrari
In this fight right up until the last laps, Mercedes didn’t focus on Sergio Perez. « For a while, Perez wasn’t really on our radar », explained Toto Wolff. « We were solely focused on ourselves. Then, we knew we had to be within five seconds of Perez. But Leclerc was so far ahead that we didn’t believe he could manage those gaps to potentially keep us behind. In the end, he could have pulled the handbrake in the final sector, but he didn’t. I think that shows the character of a driver. »
The strategy put in place by Charles Leclerc didn’t fully work out on track. The Ferrari driver wanted to win for his team at all costs. « I constantly asked about the gap between George and Checo, he stated. « Then they told me that Checo had passed George, so I knew that Checo was behind me and his best chance was obviously to get the DRS and try to distance himself as much as possible from George. I knew there were quite a few discussions between my engineer and me, and I also let him know that was my plan. But it didn’t work out. »
Ferrari finished on the last step of the podium, three points behind Mercedes.
