Charles Leclerc on Ferrari bouncing issues: "Experiments are over, now we focus on performance"
07/25/2024 02:08 PM
After the experiments in recent Grands Prix to better understand the phenomenon and causes of bouncing on the SF-24, Ferrari is now concentrating solely on maximizing performance while awaiting the updates that will arrive after the summer break, which should eliminate the bouncing and allow for a significant step forward.
“Before Budapest, we said: ‘Okay, let’s experiment less, we’ve learned enough, now we need to get the most out of our performance.’ I think we did a good job last weekend, and this weekend we want to continue in this direction.” The standings are the priority, as confirmed by Charles Leclerc. At the end of the season, the numbers matter, so they are the priority. After losing second place in the constructors’ standings to McLaren, Ferrari doesn’t want to leave anything to chance. There’s still a distant but recovering Mercedes to fend off.
The Monegasque driver didn’t make any predictions but noted that it could be a challenging weekend for Ferrari. “It’s very difficult to predict where we’ll be,” explained Charles Leclerc ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend – “especially considering the problems we’ve had in recent races. I think this track will probably highlight the bouncing issue a bit more, based on what we know, it could be a slightly more difficult weekend for us.”
McLaren has made a big leap forward and is now consistently ahead of us, so I don’t think they are our target, but we can compete with Mercedes. At the moment, we need to try to lose as few points as possible to those ahead of us, namely Red Bull and McLaren, hoping to recover when we have new parts on the car, a moment I hope comes soon. I believe that once we completely eliminate our bouncing problem,” he added, “we will regain an excellent level of performance. Bouncing is what has slowed us down in the development race, and that’s what we’re focusing on right now. So yes, once the bouncing is gone, we will make a big step forward, as confirmed by the Budapest race, where the sensations were really good.”
Formula 1 is experiencing a good moment, with seven different winners, but Charles Leclerc is less interested in the story of this season. “On one hand, it’s good for Formula 1,” he admitted, “but I would like Ferrari to have total dominance! Would it be boring? Not for me, but I understand that it’s positive and interesting for Formula 1 to have different winners and different teams developing their cars, making everything very interesting.” – he pointed out.
Charlesz Leclerc then commented on the news of the week, namely the return to the forefront of Mattia Binotto, the new head of the Audi F1 program. “Mattia spent many years of his life in Switzerland, so I imagine he knows the local culture very well, and this will help him adapt. He can also leverage his previous experience with a team like Ferrari, which will be an important base to help him face the challenge ahead. So yes, he will definitely be a great asset for a team like Sauber.” – the Ferrari driver concluded.
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