Leclerc no longer leads the World Championship and neither does Ferrari, the team is second, 26 points behind Red Bull. The abandonment of Charles and the problems of Sainz have turned the season around despite the impressive start of the F1-75 and the good performance that, in theory, the improvements released in Barcelona have brought. The Monegasque, who is racing at home this week, looked like a winner in Montmeló: “With the laps I had done, everything was going quite well. It could have been difficult for them to catch up with me. We had done quite a few more laps on the soft tyre. The race was under control”.
He stays with the positive of the weekend after an important blow: “Let’s say that I feel better now than after the previous two. There is no giving up, I am disappointed, but there are positive points. Our one lap pace, the performance of the new package, the tire management. We were suffering compared to Red Bull and this time we were strong. It’s good to keep the good, and there’s a lot this Sunday.” His engine broke and Ferrari will investigate the event in the morning. “It was a sudden problem, we knew about it when Charles was on the radio, and then the engineers saw it. The engine arrives in Maranello overnight and will be examined on Monday morning,” Binotto said.
Sainz, for his part, saved a difficult comeback with fourth, because the passage through the gravel left damage to his Ferrari. His mistake was identical to Verstappen’s: “The same, I lost control of the rear train and spun, things that happen and from which I learn. The corner entry has been one of the problems for me throughout the weekend.” Now it’s time to recover from a grand prize that could have been better. When will the situation turn around? “Yes, I ask myself, and I’m positive. It’s not been easy, as you can see on the ‘on board’ cameras, I’m suffering a lot to drive this car and know how to get the most out of it. It is a new challenge as an F1 driver and I have to learn many things. I have to try to turn it around as soon as possible. Mistakes and lack of luck have joined, on my part, but everything can change suddenly.
