Charles Leclerc says the Bahrain Grand Prix was a very motivating race for the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team thanks to Marcus Ericsson’s ninth place finish, but the 2017 FIA Formula 2 champion was dissatisfied with his own result on Sunday.
The Monegasque driver attempted an optimistic strategy after pitting after just three laps due to a flat-spot, switching to the Medium compound, but he was forced to make a second pit stop that ended his chance of breaking into the points for the first time in his Formula 1 career.
Ultimately, Leclerc trailed home in fourteenth, which became twelfth when both Sergio Perez and Brendon Hartley were handed thirty second post-race penalties, but he says he will learn from the experiences he had in Bahrain and will head to China this coming weekend feeling confident.
“It has been a motivating evening for the team,” said Leclerc. “After working hard all weekend, we scored two points, with Marcus having a very strong race.
“At the same time, I am not completely satisfied with my own result. We went for a high-risk strategy after I struggled with a flat-spot at the beginning of the race. We opted for a set of medium tyres – unfortunately, they did not last as long as we hoped.
“We are looking into what happened in the stint on the medium option and will be sure to learn from this experience. In any case, it was a positive race for the team, and I look forward to being back in the car next weekend in China.”
