The third podium of the season for Ferrari at the Belgian GP, however, it wasn’t a cause for celebration. The 2023 season’s nature is highly fickle and we see that almost every race weekend. We saw the resurgence of McLaren in the last few race weekends. The Woking outfit propelled itself from the midfield to fighting and securing podiums. This aspect has put a lot of teams in the fight and the gap between them all is marginal. This is precisely why, despite a commendable approach by Charles Leclerc, Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur is staying ultra-cautious.
The Italian team had a horrible weekend a week before the Belgian GP in Hungary. The race was marred with poor strategy, slow pit stops, and uncomfortable team orders. The Italian team, like it always does, received a lot of criticism for it. However, Ferrari changed that outlook at Spa. Leclerc’s P3 behind the two Red Bulls is an extremely positive result, now that there are multiple teams fighting for every position. However, speaking to the media, as quoted by Formula Passion, Vasseur is staying calm and cautious.
“I would stay very calm. A week ago we were talking about how we were stupid and McLaren flew. But today they are behind and we are in front,” said Vasseur. “We have to be careful and approach race by race. The group is very compact and for a few tenths, you can move from second to eleventh position. We are only halfway through the season. There is a lot of work to do, but the result from Spa allows us to experience the break in a positive mood.”
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Heading into the summer break now, the teams will have a lot on their plate to prepare for the restart. No one can tell who will come out on top in the battle for the second position. However, everyone will be making slight changes for better performance, everyone including Charles Leclerc.
Charles Leclerc reveals he made small changes in his driving that made a big difference
In the world of F1, every margin matters. Often that minuscule margin becomes the point of difference and sets everyone apart. This is exactly what Leclerc aimed at by making a small change in his driving and he reaped the rewards.
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“In my riding, I changed some very small details, but in the end, they made a big difference. This also affects the set-up, which can give me more confidence from one corner to the next,” he confessed.
However, despite reaping the reward from these changes, he had optimism but not confidence in the race. Leclerc admitted, “For Sunday, however, I don’t have much confidence, with the two Red Bulls behind us who are much faster. However, if for some reason there is an opportunity, we will exploit it.”
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Ferrari will take the result home but won’t be too happy with it as they will keep their head down and continue developing for a better showing in the second half of the season. Let’s hope they can achieve that.