Charles Leclerc will start the Italian GP on Sunday from fourth on the grid. After the session, the Ferrari driver was visibly unhappy with the result. However, F1TV presenter, Will Buxton fails to understand why the Monegasque was dissatisfied.
While speaking to the media after qualifying, Leclerc explained that he was not interested in fighting for P4 — rather, he was keen for the team to get back to the front of the field. He also pointed out that Ferrari were not able to make steps forward as the weekend progressed leaving him with a car that he was not 100% at one with.
Leclerc suffered from understeer in the first sector and second sector at Monza — something he believes cost him a shot at pole. That being said, Buxton was surprised that the #16 driver had had such a reaction.
“The car is not turning at all, again.”
Leclerc joins the queue of drivers reporting balance issues today.#F1 #ItalianGP pic.twitter.com/rEWL7tb9QM
— Formula 1 (@F1) August 31, 2024
“He’s acting like he’s qualified 15th!“, said Buxton during F1TV’s post-qualifying show. He went on to point out that the gaps at the front were very close. The top six were only separated by 0.186s at the end of the final flying laps in Q3.
Buxton also commended Ferrari for the upgraded SF-24. After a few tough weekends since the Spanish GP, Ferrari brought nine upgrades (two circuit-specific and seven performance-related) to Monza. In the end, they were able to out-qualify both the Red Bull cars on pure pace and were in the shout for pole.
That being said, Leclerc’s frustrations can be linked to his desire to perform before Ferrari‘s home crowd — the Tifosi. The last time he won the Italian GP was during his debut season with the Scuderia in 2019. Going into the Grand Prix on Sunday, Leclerc is optimistic of fighting at the front.
Long run pace during FP2 predicts a very tight contest between Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull, and Mercedes. The Monegasque is also coming in on the back of consecutive podiums at Spa and Zandvoort. So, he would be keen on maintaining or even improving this good run of form.
