Ferrari must not worry about what ‘Merc and Red Bull are doing’

Charles Leclerc says Ferrari’s mustn’t start focusing on the likes of Red Bull and Mercedes as two years of focusing solely on themselves have led to today’s form.

After two seasons without a single grand prix, Leclerc already has two this season with the in-form driver taking the chequered flag in Bahrain and again in Australia.

A P2 in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix plus the fastest lap point at all three races have given him a sizeable 34-point lead in the Drivers’ Championship.

It is one that has pundits suggesting already that this is Leclerc’s title to lose, although both the driver and Ferrari have been quick to play that down.

Ferrari have been given a boost at the top of the standings by Red Bull’s poor reliability and Mercedes’ extreme porpoising problems.

But rather than looking at what their rivals are doing, Leclerc says Ferrari must keep their focus purely on their own progress – after all that has served them well in their recovery.

“I don’t want to look too much at the others,” the championship leader said as per Motorsport.com.

“The approach that we’ve had the last two years, we couldn’t really focus on anyone else, because we did such a step backward from 2019 to 2020 that we just wanted to be back at the top.

“By focusing on ourselves, we found much more value than just focusing on the others, and I think that is the approach that I want to keep this year.

“It is not looking too much about what Mercedes and Red Bull are doing. But focusing on ourselves.

“What are the weaknesses? Again, this has been a strength of ours in the last few years, to really identify our weaknesses and to work on them and to quickly fix them.

“That’s what we need to do this year. And then I’m pretty sure that if we do that successfully, then the results will come.”

The 24-year-old will line up on the Imola grid this weekend chasing Ferrari’s first win on home soil since his 2019 Italian Grand Prix victory. Ferrari last won at Imola in 2006 with Michael Schumacher.

While buoyed by what his F1-75 has shown so far, Leclerc twice putting the car on pole position, he admits between the forecast rain and the layout of the circuit, he doesn’t know how Ferrari will perform this weekend.

“We have a pretty strong car overall, but looking back at the first three races, I think in some races, we expected to be slower than what we actually were,” he said.

“So here, I think we expect the track to fit our car a little bit better, but I think it won’t be a surprise if it’s the other way around and we’ll be less strong than what we thought.

“We need to remain cautious. I think it is so close, that it’s difficult to predict if one team, Red Bull or us, will have the upper hand.

“There’s also the rain this weekend, which is something we don’t know with these cars yet, conditions that we’ve been struggling with in the past too.

“It’s going to be very important to adapt to these conditions as quickly as possible, and be in the right window right from the start.”

Three races into this season and Leclerc has 71 points, 34 ahead of George Russell, while Ferrari are 49 up on Mercedes in the Constructors’ Championship.

Another Ferrari v Red Bull battle in Imola

Formula 1 is bracing itself for the resumption of Ferrari versus Red Bull at Imola this weekend.