Charles Leclerc was left delighted after converting his P4 on the grid at the Spanish Grand Prix into the same position at the race end.
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Charles Leclerc was extremely happy after converting his P4 on the grid at the Spanish Grand Prix into the same position at the conclusion of the race. Race pace has been an area of concern for Ferrari in 2021, but Leclerc’s performance was a step in the right direction having impressed despite facing some pretty tense competition from Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas. The key to the racer’s sublime performance at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was a fantastic pass on Bottas at the start of the race. The Monegasque benefitted from the Mercedes drivers having to avoid each other at Turn 1, to then send a pass around the outside of Bottas in Turn 3.
Although Bottas ultimately managed to pass Leclerc in the pit stops, the latter had enough pace in hand to finish fourth, comfortably ahead of Sergio Perez’s Red Bull.
“I had a good start, then I went for the outside in Turn 3 and it worked out for us and then from that moment onwards, we’ve had a very, very good race, very competitive throughout the whole race, and surely for now, P4 is the best we could have done today. So I’m happy with what the team have done over the weekend; we should be happy in moments like this and now we need to just work more and to improve the car and fight for third,” he said as quoted by the official website of Formula 1.
Leclerc’s fine performance along with Carlos Sainz fine P7 finish at home, helped Ferrari to close to within five points of rivals McLaren. The former termed the team’s performance an indication of the progress that Ferrari has made since their poor performance in the 2020 season. The edition saw them finish sixth in the constructors’ standings.
“It feels very good, because it just means that everything we do, every direction we’ve taken so far in terms of development is the right one, and we can show it on track. It’s always a good feeling, and I’m pretty sure that everyone in Maranello is happy to see the result on track,” concluded Leclerc.
