Leclerc: I need to change to fix tyre weakness compared to Vettel

Charles Leclerc says he must find out why he is harder on tyres than Ferrari Formula 1 team mate Sebastian Vettel, and is prepared to drive less aggressively if necessary

Leclerc: I need to change to fix tyre weakness compared to Vettel

In the recent Hungarian Grand Prix, Leclerc suffered more with tyre issues than Vettel and lost pace at the end of his stints.

Leclerc ran in third place for much of the race until Vettel eventually caught and passed him in the closing laps to claim the final podium spot.

Having put his slump to fourth down to "struggling with tyres again", Leclerc admitted that this had become a trend that he needs to resolve by whatever means possible.

"There's definitely something that Seb is doing better than me in the long runs, when there's degradation," said Leclerc.

"I think I need to understand something on my side. I've been struggling more, and have more tyre degradation compared to Seb, and I believe it's also coming from driving.

"Maybe I'm driving a bit too aggressively now in races, so I need to understand and analyse and try to improve for the next races.

"I'm pretty sure that Seb is doing something better than me there, so I need to understand and improve that.

"That's a few races where I'm quite quick in qualifying, but towards the end of the race I seem to struggle a bit more.

"I need to understand what I can do with my driving style to help that, or with the car balance to have a little bit of a compromise between the two, because at the end it's the race when you score points."

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto agreed that race management is one of Vettel's strengths relative to Leclerc.

"Seb is in the races always very strong," he said.

"He's aware that it's important for him to capitalise on his race pace. So when you may do some mistakes like at Silverstone that's not the best.

"But apart from that I'm very happy for that, he's experienced and knows how to manage the tyres.

"I think that is really his strength, and he's doing very well in that respect."


shares
comments

Autosport podcast: Gary Anderson on F1 2019's unexpected twists

Alex Albon to replace Pierre Gasly at Red Bull F1 team from Spa

Why drivers are the least of Ferrari’s F1 worries

Why drivers are the least of Ferrari’s F1 worries

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
GP Racing

Why drivers are the least of Ferrari’s F1 worries Why drivers are the least of Ferrari’s F1 worries

How Vasseur has begun Ferrari’s mission to keep Leclerc on side

How Vasseur has begun Ferrari’s mission to keep Leclerc on side

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
GP Racing

How Vasseur has begun Ferrari’s mission to keep Leclerc on side How Vasseur has begun Ferrari’s mission to keep Leclerc on side

Why Red Bull’s biggest F1 adversary is now itself

Why Red Bull’s biggest F1 adversary is now itself

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Jonathan Noble

Why Red Bull’s biggest F1 adversary is now itself Why Red Bull’s biggest F1 adversary is now itself

How "only tough" Tost's public lack of trust could hurt AlphaTauri

How "only tough" Tost's public lack of trust could hurt AlphaTauri

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Jake Boxall-Legge

How "only tough" Tost's public lack of trust could hurt AlphaTauri How "only tough" Tost's public lack of trust could hurt AlphaTauri

What Perez's Jeddah joy means for F1’s 2023 hopes for a real title fight

What Perez's Jeddah joy means for F1’s 2023 hopes for a real title fight

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Alex Kalinauckas

What Perez's Jeddah joy means for F1’s 2023 hopes for a real title fight What Perez's Jeddah joy means for F1’s 2023 hopes for a real title fight

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Alex Kalinauckas

Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings 2023

How Perez kept Verstappen’s Saudi Arabian GP surge at bay

How Perez kept Verstappen’s Saudi Arabian GP surge at bay

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Saudi Arabian GP
Jake Boxall-Legge

How Perez kept Verstappen’s Saudi Arabian GP surge at bay How Perez kept Verstappen’s Saudi Arabian GP surge at bay

The enormous job facing F1 for its Vegas gamble to pay off

The enormous job facing F1 for its Vegas gamble to pay off

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Las Vegas GP
GP Racing

The enormous job facing F1 for its Vegas gamble to pay off The enormous job facing F1 for its Vegas gamble to pay off