Charles Leclerc on the VSC: “We were close to disaster”
The battle between Max Verstappen and Leclerc was cut short by a controversial virtual safety car
Charles Leclerc once again he climbs to the podium in the Mexico City Grand Prixafter finishing second in a very eventful race, but which was luckily in favor of the Monegasque driver in the final laps.
The pilot of Ferrari He started second and at the start he had a touch with Lewis Hamilton in the first corner that could have cost him a abandonment. “At the beginning it was complicated because my race could have ended in turn one. But we were lucky that everything went well. We were close to disaster,” he said in the mixed zone.
On the other hand, tires Charles Leclerc had finished their optimal performance cycle, where Max Verstappen He was on the lookout in the final laps for second position on the track. However, a Virtual Safety Car caused by a traffic spin Carlos Sainz At the Foro Sol it benefited the Monegasque pilot to maintain his position.
“In the last laps we were also lucky with the safety car. Finishing second is a great achievement,” said Leclerc.
Although Sainz’s car had already left the track in the stadium area, the track marshal decided to keep the Virtual Safety Car until the checkered flag. In the case of Max Verstappendid not want to get into controversy with the final decision made by the stewards: “It is difficult to answer. It is easy to say it on our side. The race director has more cameras. We have to take a look if he thinks it is safe or not,” he stated.
The Dutchman also had a rough start, going off the track twice but little by little he regained his rhythm until he was close to Charles Leclerc in the last laps. The four-time world champion was already less than a second away and with DRS to attack the pilot of Ferrariuntil VSC ruined their chances of continuing fighting on the track and had to settle for third position.
Charles Leclerc He adds his seventh podium of the season, which places him in fifth place in the drivers’ championship with 210 points. For Max Verstappenhas finished in the Top 3 in the last six races, which currently places it in third position in the world championship with 321 points.
Behind him Mexican GP, Lando Norris leads the fight for the title F1 with his victory in Hermanos Rodríguez Autodromefollowed by his teammate Oscar Piastri by just one point difference.
