After going through a week’s break owing to the cancellation of the race in Imola, F1 is ready to make a comeback in Monaco. Red Bull carries its perfect 5/5 record going into the race but has a big disadvantage on this particular street circuit. That disadvantage plays perfectly into the hands of Ferrari and Charles Leclerc, who are looking to break their rivals’ streak. However, the Monegasque recently played down his chances of a win, providing the team with a brutal reality check.

Since last year, Red Bull has had one weak point which also happens to be Ferrari’s strong one- the qualifying pace. On a street circuit like Monaco, the pole position holder has an immense advantage which makes the qualifying of utmost importance. Leclerc has already proven his credentials on a street circuit in Azerbaijan earlier this year. Despite that, he does not consider himself as the favorite to win his home race.

Charles Leclerc reveals the reason why Ferrari is not the favorite to win in Monaco

Another big factor that defines the Monaco circuit’s nature is its slow corners. That, once again, plays into Ferrari’s hands as Red Bull is not the fastest in slow corners. But the race pace that the RB19 possesses, trumps all. That is exactly the reason the local boy is worried.

Speaking with RMC Sport recently, he said, “In the last two years we have been in pole position, but on Sunday I was unable to make it concrete. However, we are not in the same situation as last year. The car is much less competitive, we’ll see how it goes, I’ll always give my best.” [Translated using Google]

“Honestly, I think Red Bull is much stronger on all circuits. But if we can put everything together in a circuit like this, the rider can make the difference. I hope to be fit this weekend and make a difference on Saturday, because on Sunday there is no doubt that Red Bull will be ahead. But of course overtaking on this track isn’t easy and therefore if we do well on Saturday, we’ll be able to play it on Sunday.”

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Leclerc may feel that Red Bull is faster in every aspect than Ferrari, but the performance of the cars in slow corners paints a different picture. Could that play into his hands?

Leclerc tipped to break Red Bull’s perfect streak

Without any doubt, Red Bull is the fastest in straight-line speed. However, Monaco is not a circuit with too long straights. Even most of the corners are not fast corners. That, according to data, gives Ferrari a clear advantage over the Austrian team.

Tom Clarkson, on a recent episode of the F1 Nation podcast, said, “when you look at the GPS, and you look at the speed of the cars through slow corners, the Ferrari is faster than the Red Bull through the slow corners this year. And the Aston Martin is equal to it. So, when you look at Charles Leclerc’s record on street tracks, 2 pole positions in Baku with a car that is brilliant through slow corners, I think Charles is my money for pole position this time around.”

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The Monegasque needs to carry some confidence in himself and in his team going into the race this weekend. He has the car to finally extract a race win. Surely he won’t get a better chance than this one.