Charles Leclerc has been the absolute leader of the Ferrari team since last year. Whilst Leclerc had some positive results in 2020, Sebastian Vettel struggled and In an interview with the BBC, Leclerc speculates why this was the case.
"It's a question I don't know the answer to," Leclerc said. "At the end, some drivers feel more at ease with the rear moving, some others more with understeer. And this year's car probably fitted my driving style a little bit more."
He himself admits to having had difficulty with the imbalance of the SF1000, with the rear of the car, in particular, not doing what the drivers wanted. "That was very difficult for the confidence you have in the car, and confidence in F1 is everything."
"But also, as Seb mentioned a few times, it is a difficult year for him overall because he knows he is not going to be in the team next year and probably this plays a part, too."
There were a few obvious reasons why Vettel did not deliver this year. No longer wanted at Ferrari before season starts, difficult car to drive, Leclerc as no1 driver. You could tell by the body language of vettel and his driving he didn’t want to be there but why quit when your getting paid 30 -40 mil. If this years Aston is a clone of the merc then vettel will be in the mix at the front and I think will destroy Lance. Don’t be surprised if lance quits himself end of this season!
If the car is perfect for Vettel he shines, if it isn't he struggles. I wonder if the thinner tread tires introduced in some 2018 races have anything to do with it. But obviously the 2018 Hockenhein crash was a big hit in his confidence.
Leclerc is an excellent driver, one of the ones to watch for the next ten years etc. I think he is better than Verstappen overall and very close to Russell. His drive to win will outlast MV and he will become WC. His test this year is to keep Sainz under his own extraordinary abilities
Yes, his resume is impressive. He won virtually every karting championship he entered but one, where he finished second to Verstappen. And I believe he is one of the youngest drivers to win the F2 championship and he did so in his first year. Paired with Kimi, he was not out of place and his improvement was such they hastened his promotion to Ferrari. I am very interested in the matchup with Sainz as well. I rate him highly. Some drivers burst not he scene with incredible speed. Others are competent and build on their quality through time. I see Sainz in the latter category and I think he will be a handful for Leclerc. That said, I think you are correct about Leclerc's championship potential, and George's too. But I think several of the protagonists in this year's F2 season have incredible potential. We have not seen a field this strong for several years.
Once an excellent driver who now apparently suffers from TBI.
Vettel is a good driver but he needs a car that is sure footed in corners and he feels comfortable throwing them into high speed corners. He doesn’t like twitchy cars that he has to be making constant small steering corrections to in order to go quickly. The Adrian Newey designed RB which Vettel won his four WDC were such cars. Racing Point / Aston Martin cars, as with Mercedes cars are very planted, so I am expecting him to be pretty quick in the car next year. We shall soon see in about 2 months time at pre season testing.
Charles is a generational talent and he definitely was better able to tame an ill handling Ferrari. Much like Max at RB this year. You are correct about Seb liking sure footed cars and I suspect we will see him pretty quick next year as well. What I found interesting this year was how quick the Racing Point was in the wet. Very stable, very controlled, and arguably faster than the works Mercedes. But as conditions dried, the roles reversed. How much is aero and how much is suspension set up we don't know but one thing we do know is that Vettel will bring a great deal of set up knowledge from both RB and Ferrari.
Next year rules change floor in the back section of car, in order to reduce 10% downforce. Althoug FIA (wrongly) allowed RP and AlphaTauri a "coins bonus" (whose McLaren and others have not), it's very likely Aston Martin will be in troubles to modify a design project what's NOT their own, beeing their 2020 car a W10 Mercedes painted pink. While it's likely Alpha Tauri will get back the downforce and balance, the first Aston Martin could be a tricky car, which doesn't fit at all to Vettel drivin' style.
Vettel won on a "winner" car any decent driver could have done the same, Webber and many others. As soon as the car isn't superior and hasn't stability, Vettel drops in a serious trouble. It happened in RedBull, it was the same in Ferrari. I doubt he will find a car suited to his driving "style" in Aston Martin, I don't see any known "name" in charge to design the 2022 car.
Not easy, from being number 1 for so long.. n then suddenly the team's secrets are kept from you bcoz you are out. It's normal otherwise...but if there's fear of reproach... Ferrari would keep everything from you... much easier for them bcoz they were not even at the top level...
I have no doubt that his impending departure played a part unlike DR who was leaving his team on his terms.
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