Late in the race, the Ferrari driver was following down Sergio Perez's Red Bull for second place when he struck a high curb at the Variante Alta chicane, sending him into the barrier.
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After losing precious points with a spin at last weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc has pledged not to make the same mistake twice. Late in the race, the Ferrari driver was following down Sergio Perez’s Red Bull for second place when he struck a high curb at the Variante Alta chicane, sending him into the barrier. Leclerc, the championship leader, was able to return to the pits and, after slipping to ninth while repairs were performed, was able to reclaim sixth place, although with a seven-point penalty compared to third.
When asked if he felt any kind of pressure leading up to that unfortunate incident, Leclerc answered in the negative. “No there wasn’t. That’s what I think at least,” the Monegasque said. “Obviously, we had pressure, not only during the race but for the whole weekend but I don’t think I did many mistakes before this. It was a mistake that cost me a lot and I’ll learn from it but on my side, there was no particular added pressure whatsoever,” he added.
“Maybe this one was more the mental approach that you’ve had at that particular moment of the race,” he continued. “But I’ve always been strong in knowing which particular feeling I felt at that moment of the race and how to correct it. Again, it’s a mistake, I’ll learn from it, and I won’t do it again. With the mistake, I was a bit lucky because I only lost seven points in the end to what I could have scored but it’s seven points that could be valuable at the end of the season, and every point counts when you are driving for the title. So it won’t happen again.”
As Ferrari failed to deliver on home soil, Max Verstappen won a dramatic wet-dry Emilia Romagna Grand Prix over Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, with Charles Leclerc spinning late on to finish sixth after Carlos Sainz retired. The Dutchman won the Sprint on Saturday and led off the line on Sunday, with teammate Perez joining him at the front – while Leclerc dropped to fourth for a brief moment. On the first lap, the Safety Car was deployed after Daniel Ricciardo tipped Carlos Sainz into the gravel and forced him out of the race for the second consecutive Grand Prix.
On Lap 19, as the track dried, drivers began to switch from inters to mediums, with Perez coming in first, followed by Verstappen and Leclerc one lap later. The Monegasque started just ahead of Perez, but with warmer tyres, Perez skated past for P2 and then held off the Ferrari. The Red Bulls followed Leclerc’s late gamble to pit for softs from P3 and retain the lead, but the Monegasque spun and hit the wall at Variante Alta on Lap 54, again in pursuit of Perez. He dropped to ninth after pitting for a new nose and softs, and only made it to P6 at the finish.
