Charles Leclerc admits "Austin is a crucial test for Ferrari, but we're on the right track"
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Austin represents a significant challenge for Scuderia Ferrari. After racing on tracks like Monza, Baku, and Singapore, each with highly specific characteristics, Formula 1 now shifts to a more complete circuit. The Circuit of the Americas features a mix of slow and fast corners, making it an important proving ground for assessing the performance levels for the remainder of the season. Leclerc has been quite clear, pointing out that McLaren and Red Bull are the favorites going into the weekend, though he's not ruling out the possibility of surprises.
"I expect McLaren to be ahead, with Red Bull very close," Charles Leclerc explained during the official press conference ahead of the United States Grand Prix weekend – “Then I think it will be us and Mercedes. That's why I don't see us as the favorites this weekend. But at the same time, it's hard to predict how large the gaps will be. We've brought several updates to the last few races, and this is the track where we'll put everything together. Singapore, Baku, Monza—those are very specific tracks that focus on just one aspect of the car. Here in Austin, we're dealing with a more complete circuit, where every characteristic of the car must come into play. This will give us the chance to assess our progress and see if we can challenge those ahead." – the Monegasque driver pointed out.
"It's a very important weekend," Charles Leclerc added, "because the updates we've introduced in recent races have been difficult to evaluate. Now we're finally at a track that will allow us to do so, but I'm quite confident that we're heading in the right direction and that this weekend we should see the results we've been expecting."
Ferrari does have a small advantage. Teams bringing updates this weekend will only have the single 60-minute FP1 session before sprint race qualifying. However, Ferrari's engineers have already analyzed several components, minimizing the chances of surprises. "We've already gathered a lot of data from the last few races," Charles Leclerc reiterated. “Now we have a full weekend on a traditional track, so even though we won't be able to work much on the setup due to the lack of sessions, we'll still have plenty of data to rely on."
When asked whether he feels like a referee in the title fight between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc initially gave a diplomatic answer. But soon after, his competitive spirit came through, making it clear he's not ready to give up until Ferrari is mathematically eliminated from the constructors’ championship. “A referee? That's the FIA's job,” he responded with a smile. “For my part, I just want to take as many points away from them as possible. But I still believe that if we can do everything perfectly, there's a slim chance we could join the fight. That's the only thing on my mind. More than focusing on their battle, I'm focused on ours, on my own performance, and trying to win as many races as I can." – the Monegasque driver concluded.
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