Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz secured fourth and fifth place, respectively, in the Formula 1 race in Shanghai. However, they were overtaken by McLaren’s Lando Norris, who managed to split the Red Bulls with Max Verstappen in first and Sergio Perez in third.
This race marked a change in the usual hierarchy we have become accustomed to during the 2024 F1 season. Ferrari, which had been the strongest team behind Red Bull, now seemed to be competing for second place with Mercedes, while McLaren was fighting for third.
Reflecting on the race weekend in China, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur commented: “Given our starting positions, I’m not sure if we could have expected a better result today. However, I expected better pace from us during the race. We need to analyze why this happened, especially on the hard tires, and make improvements in time for Miami. The competition is extremely tight, with hundredths of a second making a significant difference.”
Vasseur further explained: “Both drivers were on a two-stop strategy, and Charles did a commendable job extending his time with the medium tires. However, when the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, we opted for a one-stop strategy, hoping to fight for a podium finish. Unfortunately, Carlos had already made his pit stop just before the Safety Car, forcing him to switch to a single stop. Despite this, he still achieved the best possible result today.”
Leclerc’s performance over the weekend was disappointing, narrowly surpassing Sainz in qualifying. Sainz even survived an accident in Q2 qualifying and managed to reach Q3. Reflecting on his race, Leclerc stated: “As a team, we are not entirely satisfied with our result today. We need to focus on improving our qualifying performance and our pace with the hard tires, which was our main challenge. Our strategy and performance were strong until the Safety Car, but it was difficult for us to regain speed on the hard tires. Future updates will be crucial in determining our direction for the rest of the season.”
Sainz’s performance in China fell short of his usual level in 2024. He commented: “It was a tough race on a demanding track for us this weekend. The first corners didn’t go as planned, and due to traffic, we decided to make an early pit stop and switch to the hard tires. We stuck with these tires during the Safety Car period and managed to finish fifth. However, overall, we had more difficulties than expected, and today’s result is not what we hoped for. We will review everything before heading to Miami, where I am confident we can return to our previous form.”
In the 2024 Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship, Ferrari currently holds second place, behind Red Bull and ahead of McLaren in third.
