Charles Leclerc says the Canadian GP was the ‘most difficult weekend’ of his career so far. Even as the driver says that, he actually never dipped below the Top 10 in any session. However, according to some reports, former F1 driver Jean Alesi fears that the Monegasque driver might start considering other options. 

In a recent media interaction, Alesi urged Leclerc to stick with Ferrari. He noted how the Scuderia firm has seen him grow into his current role. He also called for Leclerc to be patient, given the evolving technology in current cars, along with how he aims to build an ecosystem that brings him the World Champion title. 

“The technology is so different now. The F1 cars are, it's not about just the project, but it's also the evolution during the championship, what you can improve on the car, so altogether he's trying to build his team around him to be a world champion. So I don't give him the advice to move because, of course, Charles is the driver whom everybody wants.”

Starting from P8, Leclerc finished the feature race in P4, but he struggled to extract the best out of his car. He reported braking issues during Qualifying, and during the later stages of the race, he told his team not to talk to him until the end.

In an interaction with Formula1.com, he revealed he was simply focused on getting the car back to the pits. 

“I had already said it was probably the most difficult weekend so far of my Formula 1 career. I’ve finished the race now, and I can definitely say it’s the most difficult weekend of my Formula 1 career so far. Never could put the tires in the right window, but it has nothing to do with the car, of course.

The last 15-20 laps of the race are not very representative because I kind of just wanted to bring the car home. Before that, I was just still too slow, and it’s not good enough.”

However, he added that he has Lewis Hamilton’s insights to look forward to, given how he extracted more performance from the same car. 

Lewis Hamilton turns back the clock by winning P2

While Leclerc seemed to struggle, Lewis Hamilton secured his second podium win of the season. Starting from P5, the 44-year-old driver never went lower than the Top 10, and consistently kept up with the leaders.

By Lap 35, he found himself in P3, trailing behind Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli, moments after George Russell’s unexpected retirement from the race. 

Hamilton continuously built pressure on Verstappen, and in the final few laps, he made some great moves to finally overtake him. However, it was a good day for the Dutchman as well, who also finally secured his podium finish of the season. 

What are your thoughts on the Canadian GP?

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Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Suyashdeep Sason