Ad Abu Dhabi not the first position, but the pride of taking at least second is what pushed Leclerc. Which led him to give up second position to Perez (penalized 5s) on the last lap, in a vain attempt to slow down Russell. A race run with the head by the Monegasque.
He ran head first
Head on second place, the only thing that mattered when getting into the car in Abu Dhabi. To hell with his position in the drivers' championship, today we were racing for the team, only for the team. And Leclerc worked hard, to the bone for this second place, which alas, allow me to be biased today, he didn't achieve.
“I said very clearly that I didn't care about the drivers' championship -(finished in 5th position) – we wanted second place but I have no regrets because I gave everything, I couldn't do anything else.”
The awareness of the struggle with Classic Mercedes for sale it led Leclerc to evaluate every move, even the start, when he gave up being leader of the race, saving the tires with his head.
“I wanted to try but we know that in the race we lack a bit of pace, Then overtaking him there he would have immediately caught me and I had to save the tires for the fight with Mercedes"
From the start to the last lap, Ferrari tried everything. In an attempt to slow down Russell, Leclerc lets Perez pass, a studied choice?
“Last minute choice, I tried to trail him and let him pass me, sorry but on one side I'm happy, I couldn't have done more and overall it was a very positive weekend"
From Abu Dhabi, head to the future
The disappointment is great, the Monegasque tells us, who nevertheless looks back on the season with a bit of optimism and looks forward to the next one with a lot of hope.
"Big disappointment because we wanted it very much, but we couldn't do more. I'm positive, it's better to end a year on a positive note than vice versa. After Japan, I had a stronger front which was what I was missing." – what seemed to be an injection of confidence – "We have a lot to work on, but I hope to find you with a car to fight with."
