Charles Leclerc was left scratching his head after a somewhat underwhelming Sprint Qualifying session at the 2024 United States Grand Prix. Despite Ferrari’s promising pace earlier in the day during FP1, where the Scuderia topped the timesheets, Leclerc found himself unable to challenge Max Verstappen and George Russell when it mattered most, securing only third on the grid for Saturday’s Sprint race.
The Monegasque driver, who had looked strong on the medium tires during the earlier practice, admitted that Ferrari’s struggles on the soft compound came as a surprise. After a scrappy final lap, he finished 0.2 seconds adrift of pole-sitter Verstappen, with Mercedes’ George Russell snatching second.
“For some reason with the soft tire, Mercedes really gained something that we didn’t quite have in our car,” Leclerc revealed to F1TV following the session. “We were looking good earlier on the mediums, but on the softs, we just didn’t have the pace to challenge for P1.”
Leclerc acknowledged that his lap wasn’t perfect, but couldn’t pinpoint a specific error that cost him a shot at pole. “The lap was a bit scrappy, but it’s not like I did anything strange. The feeling just wasn’t great. But that’s how it goes sometimes, especially with such limited running,” he added, referring to the lack of track time during the condensed Sprint weekend format.
Still, Leclerc remains optimistic about Ferrari’s chances in the upcoming Sprint race, though he conceded that Red Bull’s Verstappen looks strong heading into the weekend. “Max is looking very quick at the moment. We don’t have a clear picture of everyone’s race pace yet, so there are still a lot of question marks,” Leclerc said.
With Ferrari currently third in the Constructors’ standings, Leclerc knows every point counts in the title chase, and the Sprint race offers a crucial opportunity to close the gap on their rivals. “We’ll see how it plays out. Hopefully, we can find something and fight for the win in the Sprint. That would be a great sign for Sunday.”
As it stands, Leclerc will start the Sprint race from P3, with his teammate Carlos Sainz lining up in fifth behind Lando Norris. Despite Ferrari’s mixed form, Leclerc remains hopeful that Ferrari can turn things around and challenge for top honors under the lights in Austin.
