Max Verstappen Sympathizes With F1 Rival Charles Leclerc After ‘Painful’ Imola GP Defeat

The irony of fate turned the table for Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc. The two Championship protagonists have tasted the bitter pill of losing out on podiums in back-to-back races. Even though it was worse for Max, as he had to suffer DNFs, things didn’t turn out well for Charles at Imola.

Charles Leclerc was in contention for a podium as he cruised through the field. Trying to get too close to Red Bull’s Sergio Perez for DRS, the Ferrari driver pushed too hard and lost his rear. Leclerc hit the barrier and came back in P9 behind Kevin Magnussen.

When asked about Charles’s mistake in Italy, Verstappen conveyed, “It’s painful. I think he knows that and he doesn’t need to hear it from anyone here. He doesn‘t do it on purpose. But it’s a long championship.”

READ MORE: Max Verstappen Leads Imperial 1–2 for Red Bull as Charles Leclerc Is Denied Ferrari Glory at Imola GP

With two wins together, why Charles Leclerc is still ahead of Max Verstappen?

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix saw Max Verstappen pull off a stunner to win his second race of the season. Meanwhile, Championship leader Charles Leclerc spun with 9 laps to go and finished in P6. With this result, Max managed to cut down the massive gap between him and Leclerc.

Verstappen suffered two DNFs in four races so far. What about the other two? He won both of them. Meanwhile, Leclerc won two races as well. With two wins apiece, Charles is still far ahead of Verstappen in the Championship fight, courtesy of his P2 in Saudi Arabia and P6 here in Italy.

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The Dutchman won the sprint race after a brilliant duel on Saturday and picked up an important 8 points for him and the team. As of now, Max stands in P2 with 59 points. Ahead of him is none other than Charles with 86 points.