Charles Leclerc nursed a late-race throttle issue to fend off Max Verstappen and win the 2022 F1 Austrian GP. "We will get them tomorrow" was what Leclerc had said after the Sprint race yesterday but nobody knew the Ferrari driver would have such a strong race pace on Sunday. As it turned out, Leclerc passed Verstappen three times in the race and won a rather comfortable race in the Red Bull driver's backyard.
As soon as the driver crossed the finish line, Twitter erupted with F1 fans breathing a sigh of relief after some tense moments with Leclerc's throttle peddle issue.
One of the Monegasque's fans exalted and wrote:
“THAT WAS THE MOST NERVERACKING WIN OF ALL TIME WOW CHARLES IS AMAZING”
Another user made it a point to clearly state that this race should be the point where Ferrari starts prioritizing Charles Leclerc over Carlos Sainz in the championship and upcoming races:
“He is a champion and Sainz is no bad but our reliability is worse in last 5-6 seasons so get that right... The only chance is WDC this season so better prioritise Charles right now for France and Hungary.”
Another fan also pointed to the points gained by Leclerc and Sainz's DNF as the logic behind Ferrari finally aligning with the former for the upcoming races.
“Sainz was having a great race today but with this Dnf Charles has to be the confirmed #1 driver now”
“THE BEST DOES IT AGAIN, DOESNT MATTER WHAT YOU THROW AT HIM”
One of Leclerc's fans even went on to claim that he was the best driver on the grid and the best always make a strong comeback.
“THE BEST DRIVER ON THE GRID COMES BACK AGAIN, A CASA LORO!!!!”
Here are a few other reactions from the race where Ferrari/Leclerc fans were on the edge of their seats in the end:
You made the difference that a champion makes!: Ferrari to Charles Leclerc
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto was on the team radio and congratulated his driver by saying it was Leclerc that made the difference in the end. The Italian said:
“You made the difference that a champion makes. Bravo, I’m happy for you.”
Leclerc is now 38 points behind Max Verstappen in the championship as the Dutch driver was still able to finish second in the race. It could have been worse but the second Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz's DNF prevented that from happening.