“Don’t Think I’ve Made a Lot of Mistakes…”: Charles Leclerc Makes No Excuse of Ferrari F1 ‘Pressure’ Behind Costly Imola GP Gaffe

Two weeks ago, the Tifosi made their presence known on a cloudy Sunday afternoon in Imola. With red fogs taking over the sky and Ferrari flags waving around the grandstand, the expectations were high from the word go. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari’s golden boy, shouldered all these expectations. Of course, the pressure is not new for the Monegasque, as F1 fans will remember his heroics during the 2019 Monza GP.

However, Leclerc did not fulfill the hopes of the huge Tifosi crowd. Starting from P2, he immediately lost his place to Perez. To add to his misery, his spin in the later stages of the race did not do him any favors.

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In the end, he finished 6th as the Italian team only gathered 8 points in the race. There is a question of whether the 24-year-old lost his position because of the high-pressure situation. Nevertheless, he revealed it was just a minor error on his part.

Charles Leclerc reflects on his mistake

During lap 53, Leclerc had a moment to forget. He was only around 1 second behind Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and pushed hard to regain his position. With his teammate suffering an early DNF, the onus was on him to secure valuable points.

As a dejected Carlos Sainz watched on from Ferrari’s camp, Leclerc hit the curb and spun. It was a costly error, but he reveals it did not happen because of the pressure. “No, it didn’t. At least that’s what I think. And I don’t think I’ve made a lot of mistakes before,” he said

“I just saw an opportunity that wasn’t there before. I pushed a bit harder, and it was too much. But from my side, there was no extra pressure or anything,” the Monegasque stated.

Team Principal Mattia Binotto also agreed with Charles. He said, “The way he managed it, he didn’t feel any extra pressure. So I think it was just a mistake. That can happen, and I’m pretty sure he’s aware of that. And that’s enough for me.”

Leclerc affirms the errors will not repeat

With the Miami Grand Prix approaching, Ferrari will look to bounce back. Red Bull is right back in the race for the championship as only 11 points separate the two. Leclerc further added the mistake will not repeat, which will be music to the ears of Ferrari fans.

“I’ve always been very good at knowing exactly what feeling I was feeling at the time of the race and how to correct it. Yes, it was a mistake, and I’m not going to make it again,” he said.

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With the race for the championship intensifying, who will come out on top in Miami. Leave your predictions in the comments.