Leclerc: A “difficult on paper” race for Ferrari
Charles Leclerc hopes for "a nice surprise" in Belgium. The Monegasque driver admits that the Spa-Francorchamps circuit is not ideal for his Ferrari.
After a difficult first part of the season, Charles Leclerc hopes to bounce back this weekend in Belgium. In 2019, he won his first F1 race. At that time, the Monegasque had a much better car, unlike this season. A less performing car that cannot compete with the top teams.
Worse, Leclerc has to deal with bad luck. The Ferrari driver has faced the mistakes of other drivers, as seen with Lance Stroll’s collision at the first corner in Hungary. The Monegasque had to retire on the first lap. Although he has a better car than last year, Leclerc does not expect anything extraordinary on the Spa-Francorchamps track.
« On paper, I think that this particular track is quite challenging for us. That being said, we’ve already had some very good surprises this year, so I hope we will have another one this weekend and that we will be more competitive than we thought coming here. But on paper, it doesn’t seem to be a strong track for us.
An engine upgrade coming soon
The team principal, Mattia Binotto, said that Leclerc and his teammate Sainz could expect an upgrade of the power unit. An important step for Ferrari. But this upgrade is not expected to arrive right away. Both drivers will have to be patient. This improvement can bring a smile to the Monegasque driver who is waiting for a competitive car. It is far from imagining that Ferrari could compete with Red Bull and Mercedes this season.
« I know there is an upgrade, it will be on the hybrid part of the engine. We do not know yet when we will bring it.
