Charles Leclerc cut a happier figure in Parc Ferme after the Saudi Arabian GP after a competitive evening.
Leclerc enjoyed race-long battles with George Russell’s Mercedes and a Titanic battle with Lando Norris for the final spot on the podium. Keeping the McLaren behind in the final laps, Leclerc drove a calculated race in Jeddah to secure his and Ferrari’s first Grand Prix podium. Speaking in Parc Ferme after the race, he responded to a question on where his pace originated after a difficult qualifying.
“It’s the way it is for now. Unfortunately, in qualifying, we don’t manage to extract more out of the car. I was extremely happy with the lap yesterday. I was very, very happy with the race today.
“I think we maximized absolutely everything, so I’m very proud of what we’ve done. Now we just need to improve the car in order to be fighting a bit further.
Extracting maximum performance in Jeddah
Leclerc also reflected on a relaxed exchange with his engineer during the evening.
“He was very chilled. Brian was very relaxed on the pit wall. For me, it was a little bit more intense inside the car, but yeah, I mean, we have a very good relationship, and I think that, yeah, we can see it on track now and it shows results, so I’m really happy about this.
Leclerc confirmed that third was the best result available, and revealed his hope for further good results.
“By far. I never expected to finish there. Honestly, I thought that this race was about defending the cars behind, especially Kimi. So it was really good. So for Ferrari fans around the world, this is a game that never, a race that never ends.
“It’s about upgrades. What is the next step forward for the team? Yeah, we need to keep pushing the maximum. And, hopefully upgrades are coming soon in order to improve the car, but thanks for the support.”
