“Charles Leclerc is having a hard time and makes mistakes”- Helmut Marko on how Red Bull is putting Ferrari star under tremendous pressure

Helmut Marko feels that Red Bull has put a lot of pressure on Charles Leclerc and Ferrari which has forced them to make mistakes.

After a strong start to the 2022 season, Ferrari’s rapid rise has hit a roadblock. After the first three rounds, it seemed like Leclerc was favorite to win the Title, but Red Bull have made up for it big time.

At one point, the Monegasque driver was 40 points ahead of Max Verstappen. The tables have turned now as Verstappen leads the Ferrari driver by nine points. What’s even worse for the Italian team is that as of now, both Red Bull drivers are in the midst for a Championship battle.

Sergio Perez’s win in Monaco means that he’s just eight points behind Leclerc. The latter’s partner on the other hand has had a tough time behind the wheels and is in fifth place. More than Red Bull’s increase in performance, it has been Ferrari’s blunders that have handed them the lead.

Red Bull advisor Marko feels that the Maranello based team are under pressure, which has forced them to take poor strategic calls lately.

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Charles Leclerc has been forced to make mistakes

Leclerc and the team strategists in Monaco had a tough outing last week. The 24-year old started the race in pole position and was cruising towards a victory. However, a goof up on their part took the win away from Leclerc, and instead he finished the race P4.

Even before Monaco, Leclerc has been having a tough time. In Imola, he made a mistake while pushing hard which forced him to spin out of the track and finish P6. At the Spanish GP in Barcelona, a power-unit failure forced him to retire the car. All these results cost him a lot of points, and allowed Verstappen to overturn a 40 point deficit.

Marko recently shared his thoughts on why Ferrari are struggling, despite having a brilliant start to the season.

“You are under pressure, Leclerc has a hard time with that and makes mistakes” he said. “This is racing. In Monaco we forced Ferrari to react… they reacted instinctively wrong.”

Ferrari will be hoping for a flawless race next week, when the teams and drivers travel to Baku for the 2022 Azerbaijan GP

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