Leclerc: Toro Rosso and Hartley played a bit of a game in Monaco GP
Sauber Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc believes Toro Rosso played "a bit of a game" during the Monaco Grand Prix by getting Brendon Hartley to slow down others

Toro Rosso's Pierre Gasly ran a very long first stint to rise from 10th to sixth but looked as though he would drop out of the points as others stopped earlier and eradicated his pitstop window.
Hartley was 12th, heading a group of midfield contenders that moved into points contention by stopping earlier, and just 15 seconds behind Gasly on lap 26 but had dropped to 28s back when Gasly pitted 10 laps later.
"That was so frustrating," said Leclerc, who was bottled up behind Hartley. "I think Toro Rosso has played a bit of a game.
"Brendon was clearly slowing down at one point. We were like 2.8s slower than the laps we were doing at the end of the race.
"Before that we were in a very good place to score points, theoretically."
Gasly defied all expectations for hypersoft tyre management by extending his opening stint so long, which he admitted was an improvisation from his team as it monitored the performance of the otherwise unpopular compound.
At the beginning of the phase that re-established Gasly's pitstop window, Hartley caught a five-car train led by Nico Hulkenberg, who was also running long.
Hartley fell away from that group during an erratic spell in which his laptimes rose into the 1m20s, having been consistently 1m18s before.
It took Hartley another dozen laps after Gasly stopped before he started to consistently improve again, which Hartley said was down to the front tyres graining.

Several drivers struggled with this during the same phase of the race but Hartley felt his problem was exacerbated by front wing damage from the a first-lap bump with Leclerc.
"Initially I did a few very good laps to get the undercut, which worked very well, then I suffered big time with graining," Hartley explained.
"The team told me others were suffering the same, but I think having damage on the front wing wasn't helping."
Hartley picked up a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane, which meant that even when it looked like his group would get ahead of the runners yet to stop he was poised to tumble down the order.
"If we were in their position, considering Brendon's penalty, we probably would have done the same as a team," said Leclerc.
"It's not blaming anything on Toro Rosso, it was just frustrating to be the car behind."
The on-track battle between Hartley and Leclerc ended in a spectacular crash when Leclerc's front left brake disc "exploded" under braking for the Nouvelle chicane.
Sauber had registered a brake problem on Leclerc's car but thought it would survive to the end of the race.

Red Bull was willing to let Ricciardo's engine fail in Monaco F1 race
Ferrari's chief F1 designer Simone Resta leaves to join Sauber

Latest news
Daytona 24: WTR Acura tops heavily interrupted FP1
Five red flags disrupted the first practice session for this weekend's Daytona 24 Hours, while Filipe Albuquerque put the Wayne Taylor Racing Andretti Autosport Acura on top.
Pedrosa to make KTM MotoGP wildcard outing in Spanish GP
Dani Pedrosa will make his first MotoGP race start since the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix with a wildcard entry for KTM at this year’s Spanish GP in April.
House of Lords peer criticises "discourteous and unprofessional" Ben Sulayem
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been criticised by a House of Lords peer for being "deeply discourteous and unprofessional" in failing to reply to human rights concerns.
LMP2 drivers question move to slow class for Daytona 24 Hours
Leading LMP2 drivers have questioned the need for the secondary class to be slowed ahead of this weekend's Daytona 24 Hours, given that the new top-class GTP cars are running similar lap times to their DPi predecessors.
The crucial tech changes F1 teams must adapt to in 2023
Changes to the regulations for season two of Formula 1's ground-effects era aim to smooth out last year’s troubles and shut down loopholes. But what areas have been targeted, and what impact will this have?
Are these the 50 quickest drivers in F1 history?
Who are the quickest drivers in Formula 1 history? LUKE SMITH asked a jury of experienced and international panel of experts and F1 insiders. Some of them have worked closely with F1’s fastest-ever drivers – so who better to vote on our all-time top 50? We’re talking all-out speed here rather than size of trophy cabinet, so the results may surprise you…
One easy way the FIA could instantly improve F1
OPINION: During what is traditionally a very quiet time of year in the Formula 1 news cycle, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been generating headlines. He’s been commenting on massive topics in a championship that loves them, but also addressing necessary smaller changes too. Here we suggest a further refinement that would be a big boon to fans
How can McLaren keep hold of Norris?
Lando Norris is no longer the young cheeky-chappy at McLaren; he’s now the established ace. And F1's big guns will come calling if the team can’t give him a competitive car. Here's what the team needs to do to retain its prize asset
What difference did F1's fastest pitstops of 2022 make?
While a quick pitstop can make all the difference to the outcome of a Formula 1 race, most team managers say consistency is more important than pure speed. MATT KEW analyses the fastest pitstops from last season to see which ones – if any – made a genuine impact
When F1 ‘holiday’ races kept drivers busy through the winter
Modern Formula 1 fans have grown accustomed to a lull in racing during winter in the northern hemisphere. But, as MAURICE HAMILTON explains, there was a time when teams headed south of the equator rather than bunkering down in the factory. And why not? There was fun to be had, money to be made and reputations to forge…
What Porsche social media frenzy says about F1’s manufacturer allure
Porsche whipped up a frenzy thanks to a cryptic social media post last week and, although it turned out to be a false alarm, it also highlighted why manufacturers remain such an important element in terms of the attraction that they bring to F1. It is little wonder that several other manufacturers are bidding for a slice of the action
Why the new Williams boss shouldn’t avoid ‘Mercedes B-team’ comparisons
OPINION: Williams has moved to replace the departed Jost Capito by appointing former Mercedes chief strategist James Vowles as its new team principal. But while he has sought to play down the idea of moulding his new squad into a vision of his old one, some overlap is only to be expected and perhaps shouldn't be shied away from
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.