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Former Ferrari F1 driver Jean Alesi believes Charles Leclerc might have been able to get on the podium at the 2022 F1 Canadian GP had Ferrari managed a quicker pitstop, overcutting slower cars that the Monegasque had been stuck behind.
Alesi felt that Leclerc was visibly struggling to get a good exit out of the hairpin heading into the back straight, losing him time and making it impossible for him to overtake. Hence, he felt that a quicker stop might have helped the Monegasque overtake the slower cars off track. In his column for Corriere della Sera, Alesi wrote:
“Charles’ Ferrari less downforce, and this leads to some problems coming out of the hairpin that leads to the only straight to overtake. He was having traction problems as he exits the hairpin. But, if he had managed to get back on track after the pit stop with a little margin on that “train” of slower cars, he might have been able to get on the podium.”
Ferrari tried out a new experimental low-downforce/low-drag rear wing on Charles Leclerc’s car in Montréal. The new wing was supposed to bring the F1-75 on par with the Red Bull RB18 in terms of straight-line speed.
Considering that Leclerc started from the back of the grid with power unit penalties, the new wing was thought to make overtaking easier for him. His car, however, struggled with rear traction, especially at Lowe's hairpin, losing the Monegasque precious time.
Despite his superior acceleration and top speed, he was unable to make much progress against slower cars in a “DRS train” early in the race and was forced to settle for P5.
Nevertheless, Jean Alesi was pleased with Leclerc’s performance in Montréal and felt that he managed to perform consistently despite “complicated conditions”.
He said:
“I think that Charles’ race was crazy. He saved the car by getting by in the chaos of the first laps and then he did well, in a very complicated condition.”
Charles Leclerc will have “plenty of opportunities” to retake championship lead: Jean Alesi
Jean Alesi believes that Charles Leclerc and Ferrari will still have “plenty of time and opportunities” to fight back against Max Verstappen and Red Bull to retake the championship lead, despite their recent woes. In his column for Corriere della Sera, Alesi wrote:
“Technical troubles have come and will come for every team. We are not even halfway through the championship. There will be plenty of time and opportunities to recover, starting with the next round at Silverstone, a track that exalts champions.”
Leclerc currently trails Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez by 49 and 3 points respectively, despite leading the drivers’ standings early in the season. Meanwhile, Ferrari is 78 points behind Red Bull in the constructors' standings.
