Charles Leclerc spent the Formula One off weekend attending his first 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he tucked into the back of the Ferrari garage and watched the Italian automaker win the iconic endurance race for the first time since 1963.
The celebration was wild and one Leclerc hasn바카라t been part of in some time.
He doesn바카라t expect that to change on Sunday at the Canadian Grand Prix, where Leclerc expects Ferrari바카라s season-long slump to continue. Leclerc can accept that Ferrari is off pace from Red Bull, winners of all seven races so far this season.
What isn바카라t as acceptable is the lack of answers for Ferrari바카라s ailments.
Leclerc didn바카라t make it out of the first round of qualifying in Spain two weeks ago because of handling problems on his Ferrari. The entire rear end of his car was changed ahead of the race and Leclerc drove from 19th to 11th 바카라 but he doesn바카라t understand why he struggled so much in Spain.
바카라Qualifying in Barcelona was a very particular one and I think I wasn바카라t the only one to struggle. We need to understand these things and for now we don바카라t have the reasons,바카라 Leclerc said. 바카라This is a little bit more worrying and that바카라s where we need to push and try to understand the reasons of it because obviously the feeling was really bad.바카라
Trying to gauge how Ferrari might perform in Montreal was difficult on Friday as Leclerc was one of 13 drivers to get on track during the first practice session before it was halted because of technical issues. The cameras stationed around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve malfunctioned and lost connectivity to race control, so the practice was halted.
The FIA added 30 minutes to Friday afternoon바카라s second practice, but rain was expected to disrupt it.
Ferrari has just one podium finish this season, ranks fourth in the constructors바카라 championship and already trails leader Red Bull by 187 points. Leclerc is seventh in the drivers바카라 championship. The results are unacceptable for an organization that hoped this season to dethrone Red Bull and Max Verstappen바카라s two-year reign as champions.
바카라Overall I think all the team is not satisfied with the performance we are showing at the moment on track and it is very far off expectations at the beginning of the season,바카라 Leclerc said. 바카라Looking ahead we just need to keep pushing, try and bring upgrades as quickly as possible and regularly which is our aim now to try and close the gap to the guys in front and also close the gap especially in terms of race pace.바카라
Ferrari had upgrades on its SF23 in Spain with no results, and although Leclerc expects Montreal to be a better fit for the car, he바카라s not expecting a sudden victory.
바카라On this track we don바카라t have anything new so I don바카라t think we바카라ll have any miracles,바카라 he said. 바카라But we need to just try and maximize our package, understand more this package, set-up the car in order to maximize it. We have learned a lot and pretty sure we will be in a better place for this weekend, but I don바카라t think it will be a huge step forward.바카라
MORE RED BULL MARKS
Two-time world champion Verstappen can tie the late Ayrton Senna바카라s record for wins if he scores his 41st career victory this weekend. The Dutchman is the defending winner and a victory Sunday would move him into a tie with Senna for fifth on F1바카라s all-time list.
But he바카라s also on a streak of leading 154 consecutive laps, and should Verstappen lead all 70 laps Sunday, he would move to fifth on the list of most consecutive laps led in F1 바카라 and the longest streak since Nigel Mansell led 235 laps in 1992.
Red Bull this weekend could also become the third team in F1 history to win all of the first eight races in a season. McLaren in 1988 and Mercedes in 2019 are the only other teams to have won the first eight races of a season.
Sergio Perez, meanwhile, is hoping the Canadian Grand Prix will be a reset for him.
Although Perez has two wins this season to keep Red Bull undefeated, the Mexican has slipped the past two races and has fallen 53 points behind his teammate in the driver standings.
바카라I basically want a restart, to go again,바카라 said Perez. 바카라I바카라m looking forward to getting back on the form we had in the early season. I can바카라t afford to have any bad weekends anymore. I think I바카라ve had two or three bad weekends in the season, so I really have to get rid of those and keep the consistency high, because I think Max has been really good and consistent throughout this period.바카라
Perez has never qualified higher than eighth in Montreal and has not had a points-scoring finish since 2017.
ASTON MARTIN EXPECTATIONS
Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll has huge ambition for Sunday바카라s race and wants his son, Lance, on the podium in his native country.
Fernando Alonso has been on the podium in five of seven races this season and in Canada, Lawrence Stroll wants his son on the steps alongside Alonso. Lance Stroll is the only Canadian driver on the F1 grid.
바카라Those are exactly the plans. Hopefully get two cars on the podium,바카라 Lawrence Stroll said. 바카라 I바카라m extremely confident. I believe the car will be very strong around the Montreal circuit, it suits our car well. I바카라m really looking forward to going home and really looking forward to a great race.바카라
The confidence seemed to surprise Alonso, who is third in the driver standings and seeking his elusive 33rd career F1 victory.
바카라You never know, but it is an aggressive target for the weekend,바카라 he said. 바카라But we know Lawrence, (his) ambition is super high, always, and we will try to make him happy and proud in the home Grand Prix.바카라
