Ferrari's Monegasque denied such a hypothesis and justified his crash at Paul Ricard, stating that he erred alone because he was "struggling with the limits. However, Leclerc showed a more optimistic tone and signaled: there is no doom scenario
Formula 1 is about to get underway for the weekend in Hungary, but Charles Leclerc's crash at the French Grand Prix still reverberates. The Ferrari Monegasque made a solo mistake while leading the race - handing victory to then second-placed driver and main rival for the season, Max Verstappen.
Asked whether pressure from the Dutchman at Paul Ricard could be used as justification for the incident, Leclerc, however, denied it.
"The real pressure, I had when Max was really behind. And then (on lap 18), Max had already switched to a non-optimal strategy, so I just had to push hard and focus on my own race, which I was doing. But then obviously when you are struggling with the limits sometimes mistakes can happen, and I think this is one kind of mistake where I went too far - and that's it," explained the Italian driver.
With the accident cleared up and the help of time, Leclerc changed his mind about the consequences of the crash in France for the rest of the championship. Before, the Monegasque showed a merciless attitude towards himself, even saying that he "didn't deserve to be champion" like that. Now, the Ferrari driver said he is ready to put what happened in Le Castellet behind him.
"There is nothing that helps me: to dwell on my mistake or stay in the past with it. No. I made the mistake, it cost me a lot of points, I'm aware of that, and that's it. Now, I just need to move on, focus 100% on this weekend, try to do the best I can, try to win this race, and then I'm sure everything will be fine," Leclerc said.
The more optimistic tone also extends to his own claims at the Hungaroring. Leclerc acknowledged that the circuit is not one of his best - but this does not necessarily imply defeat. There is an example in the current season, even, that proves this.
"I think we will have a strong car. I think Paul Ricard and Budapest are two tracks where I've had a bit more difficulty in the past, on a personal level - but Australia also used to be that same case, and in the end I managed to have a great weekend there. So hopefully now I can turn things around as well," he finished.