Charles Leclerc was doing a strong race halfway through the race and looked set on a possible victory until Ferrari decided to give him a set of hard tyres. A visibly disappointed Leclerc finished the race in sixth and does not understand his team’s strategic choice.
After two stints on the medium tyre, Leclerc said he would continue as long as possible on his second set of medium, but in the end Ferrari decided to call him in for the hard tire compound. It did not function well and in the end Leclerc even got a set of soft tires. He eventually finished sixth.
“We need to discuss this with the team to understand the rationale behind this decision to go for the hard tire compound,” said Leclerc. “After all, I was riding very strong on the medium tire and thought we had everything under control.”
“I don’t know why we had to go on the hard tire compound. I said about the on-board radio that I felt very comfortable on the medium band and that I wanted to continue on those bands for as long as possible.”
“I don’t know why they made a different decision.”