It will be another time Ferrari against Red Bull in Belgium, Leclerc v Verstappen. After an intense first part of the season, the Dutchman went on vacation with a haul of no less than 80 points ahead of the Monegasque who, a few years ago, obtained his first Formula 1 victory here, the day after the death of Anthoine Hubert . There are several factors that would help the Reds to get back into the fight in the world championship. Even winning them all – let's remember that there are only 9 races left – in fact, it wouldn't be enough. But despite the errors, the problems of reliability and some botched strategies that took away several points Leclerc has never resigned. Nor is he willing to do it now, even with one penalty which is looming and which could bind him to a difficult competition.
The break that was needed
Charles has never experienced such an intense start to the season. He immediately found an extremely competitive single-seater in his hands, but also a rather uncomfortable opponent, both for the talent and for the great experience accumulated in 2021. Max and Charles have many characteristics in common but belong to two teams that started with and different goals. Ferrari had to move up the group, closing the performance gap. Once it was ascertained that he had made up for that, the defects of the Maranello team began to show, which arrived with great difficulty at the summer break. “The first part of the season was full of ups and downs. I have accumulated a lot of emotions which eventually lead to tiredness. I used these three weeks to the fullest with family and friends, I needed rest“, these are the words of Charles Leclerc in the press conference of Belgian Grand Prix.
Ferrari restarts from Spa and does so with great enthusiasm, with a selfie destined to become one of the symbols of this season.
Leclerc still believes in the World Cup
With Red Bull's impressive pace and still some reliability problems from the Red Bull, a penalty will probably be played out in Belgium to introduce the new hybrid – at least two Verstappen retirements would be needed to recover. In addition to a series of successes lined up for Ferrari. But according to Charles, getting to the finish line may still be possible. “How do I see the next races? We will take them one at a time at a team level, but we will try to make the most of the opportunities that arise before us. I still believe in the title. It will be difficult, of course, but I will believe it until the end. I have to do like Sebastian Vettel in 2013, when he won every race after the summer break: maybe it's easier said than done but I'll do my best. Spa? It's a very special track for me, for every driver the first victory is special. I got it here under strange conditions due to Anthoine's death on Saturday. It's a track I've always enjoyed driving at, I hope to get a great result this weekend. Photo in Maranello? It's a tradition, even if for Covid it wasn't done in 2020-2021. We have worked together for the past two years and it helped us get competitive again. We are trying to do the same".
Statement source: FormulaPassion
