Charles Leclerc will start the F1 Sprint from P2, behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen but isn’t satisfied with just a front row start.
Ferrari had the strongest car this weekend, and they showed how fast they were during FP1. However, qualifying turned out to be a problem, particularly after they were left with just one car after Q2.
Carlos Sainz lost control of his rear tyres and crashed into the barriers. The Spaniard starts tomorrows race from 1oth position. Leclerc meanwhile, carried his F1-75 all the way to the very end, but lost out on pole to Verstappen.
P2 and P10 for tomorrow’s #F1 Sprint.
We’ll keep pushing into the weekend 💪#essereFerrari 🔴 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/QG4nkEQCF9
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) April 22, 2022
It was a difficult qualifying session for all the teams, with many drivers spinning around/running off track due to the very wet conditions. Leclerc was wary of the wet patches, which prevented him from pushing to the maximum.
In the post race interview with Sky Sports, Leclerc admitted that while P2 isn’t a disaster, the team were expecting and very much hoped they’d start on pole.
Charles Leclerc rues the wrong choices made during Q3
Leclerc admits that driving on the slicks were not easy. A part of the track did dry out, but it was in patches. Wet portions of the circuit made it very difficult for Leclerc to keep his car on the racing line.
In spite of not being satisfied with his running, the Monegasque will be hoping to take make amends tomorrow. He starts the F1 Sprint alongside Verstappen on the front row.
All to play for in tomorrow’s #F1 Sprint 👊@Charles_Leclerc P2#essereFerrari 🔴 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/hVkjWbtf9f
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) April 22, 2022
“It was very tricky,” the 24-year old said. “Especially on the slicks there quite a lot of wet patches.”
“So it was all about putting the laps in and waiting for Q3 to put everything together. This is why it’s even more frustrating for me because when it counts in Q3 I did the wrong choice, but it’s life. We’ll learn from it and in the end P2 is not a disaster.”
“Everything to play for tomorrow and after tomorrow and well give everything,” Leclerc concluded.
Also read: Carlos Sainz denies having problems with Ferrari over the length of his contract