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F1 pundit Scott Mitchell-Malm claimed that Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc's P4 finish at the Japanese GP was a 'reminder' to his critics about his skillset after criticism during the qualifying session.
The Ferrari driver had an unusually off-qualifying session for the second time in as many races at the Suzuka International Circuit as he finished P8, four places behind his teammate Carlos Sainz.
However, Sainz was only a tenth ahead of the Monegasque, the qualifying result had cost the latter a shot at victory at the Australian Grand Prix, which the Spanish driver famously won.
While appearing on the The Race F1 podcast, Mitchell-Malm pointed out that Charles Leclerc's one-stop masterclass was an answer to the critics' questions about his skills behind the wheel. He said:
"He'd have much rather obviously just had the great qualifying session and race from fourth on the grid because who knows what he could have achieved based on the way he played that race maybe he had the pace to beat Perez and split the Red Bulls."
"But it was kinda nice in a way to have it this way because good reminder from Charles Leclerc to the people who are a bit simplistic about his skillset. He's got that tire management race in his locker."
Charles Leclerc analyzes his P4 finish at the Japanese GP
Charles Leclerc stated that he was happy with his performance in the main race on Sunday at Suzuka despite starting the race from P8.
Speaking with F1.com, the Ferrari driver said:
"The pace has been really, really good. The tire management has been really, really good. Communication and strategy has been really, really good. It’s also good to be voted Driver of the Day."
"Sometimes you do great races but you are a bit on your own, and nobody notices it. Today I’m happy that people noticed it, and we’ll focus on the next race to try and put everything together, and to finally have the result that we want.”
Charles Leclerc has been puzzled by his qualifying woes as his one-lap pace has been one of his major strengths in his time in F1. He would look to get over the issues on Saturday in Shanghai as the track layout may suit the SF-24.
The Monegasque would want to seize any opportunity of a race win in China for himself and not hand over the advantage to his teammate as he did in Melbourne.
