Scuderia Ferrari go into this weekend’s first-ever Qatar Grand Prix, on the back of a near perfect triple-header so far with the Scuderia outscoring Constructors’ rivals Mclaren F1 Team.
Charles Leclerc goes into the first Formula One race at the Losail International Circuit having closed the gap right up to Lando Norris in the battle for fifth in the Drivers’ standings. The Monegasque driver sits just three points behind Norris, with three races remaining going into Qatar this weekend. The Losail International Circuit is new to virtually all the drivers, meaning that learning the circuit quickly could play pivotal to a strong weekend.
Leclerc knows the importance that the team keep moving forward, as they look to take complete control of third place in the Constructors standings.
“I was able to do a lap of the track by bike and it seems very interesting. I’ll be able to do a few more laps, but only when we get in the car and start looking at the numbers will we be able to understand what it’s really like. In order to be full tuned in to the track I think will require around 15 laps but we have three free practice sessions ahead of us, so I don’t think it will be a problem for anyone.
“We must continue doing everything perfectly, as that’s the only way to maximise our car’s potential. We managed it in the past two races, but we cannot let our guard down. As a driver, you want to finish as high up as possible and Lando is just three points ahead of me.
“Here again, if we do everything perfectly, it will be possible to fight with him, but I have to say that this is less important than the battle for third placed team. In the end, I won’t celebrate if I finish fifth, but neither will I cry if I don’t manage to get ahead of Norris in the classification.”
Battle with Mclaren “still very close” – Carlos Sainz Jr.
Carlos Sainz Jr has been right amongst the Mclaren’s over the last handful of races, with the Spaniard having enjoyed some brilliant battles with his former-team. Sainz has made sure to have done plenty of research going into Qatar, with so much unknown heading into the weekend.
Sainz is aware that he needs to make the most of Friday, in order to help the team get the edge over Mclaren.
“Apart from the motorcycle races on the Internet, I also found some footage from other cars, even if they were in much slower categories than Formula 1. To get a better idea we’ll have to get in the car and begin to build up some mileage. That’s why it will be important to make the most of tomorrow.
“Despite how the last two races went, I think it’s still very close, because the gap between us is always just a few tenths, if we look at what made the difference recently it was down to the number of mistakes made and reliability, which so far went in our favour. But it’s not over yet so it will be vital to stay focused one hundred percent.”
