“It’s irritating. After we may run our personal tempo we weren’t dangerous, however you’ll be able to’t race managing 95% of the time,” Fred Vasseur stated within the post-race press convention, displaying real frustration and disappointment for the primary time. The Staff Principal additionally confirmed that the crew anticipated to handle temperatures in the course of the race, however to not this extent. Reviewing crew radio, lap instances, and race development, Ferrari was pressured at instances to be the slowest on monitor or match the tempo of the slower automobiles to handle technical points affecting the SF-25.
Leclerc and Hamilton: mere passengers maximizing the automobile
“Bear in mind to do LiCo for brake temperatures”—this was the message repeatedly echoing in Charles Leclerc’s ears all through the Singapore GP. The primary message arrived not mid-race, however in the course of the formation lap. The opening laps had been initially left “free” to permit for defensive and offensive strikes in the course of the chaotic begin, however inside 5 laps, the Monegasque needed to start managing the automobile. Changes of 20 meters right here, 30 meters there, together with requests which might be excessive by trendy F1 requirements, had been communicated particularly to Lewis Hamilton whereas he was behind Kimi Antonelli in the course of the first section of a 100-meter Raise & Coast.
Everybody noticed Antonelli’s overtake on Leclerc on the restrict of Flip 16, the place the Italian driver made the transfer decisively. Whereas the overtake was spectacular, from contained in the cockpit it was doubtless simpler than it appeared externally. Though Mercedes driver Antonelli’s aggression deserves recognition, it ought to be famous that Leclerc needed to brake a number of meters earlier, easing off three-quarters down the straight attributable to LiCo restrictions, unable to brake aggressively. The overtake started whereas Antonelli was nonetheless accelerating, and after a number of laps of observing how a lot floor he gained below braking, he capitalized on Ferrari’s difficulties.
Fred Vasseur aptly referred to as the scenario irritating, however think about the drivers’ perspective. Leclerc was instructed to carry out LiCo earlier than the race and needed to proceed for virtually the complete race—generally much less, generally extra, cooling both the rear or entrance, consistently adjusting. The Monegasque even requested for extra updates in the course of the race to grasp what he wanted to handle at every section. At one level, he was requested if he needed to pit for Delicate tires, sacrificing two positions (one being Hamilton’s), to chase the automobiles forward. Leclerc’s key response was, “Can I push then?” and the reply was, “We have to proceed managing.” That answered all the things: there was no level in placing on Delicate tires if he couldn’t push. Later, he was allowed to steadily return to race tempo for 4–5 laps earlier than needing to renew LiCo administration. Basically, Leclerc needed to be sluggish to achieve the end. He was penalized greater than Hamilton due to his setup selections on the SF-25, which required much more administration. “I’m not complaining, however **** we do 200 meters of LiCo each time,” Leclerc expressed in frustration in the course of the race. His phrases and post-race demeanor spoke volumes.
As for Lewis Hamilton, he needed to handle the automobile much less severely than Leclerc however nonetheless carried out LiCo and struggled with rear tires, forcing him to handle extra and brake much less aggressively. Submit-race, Hamilton praised the crew for daring to strive a distinct technique and famous that weekend operations had been more difficult than the SF-25 itself. The seven-time world champion selected a two-stop technique, permitting him to catch Antonelli and try an overtake. Sadly, on the important second, his brakes overheated after seven laborious laps, adopted by two barely slower and two extra laborious laps. The left entrance brake overheated, forcing Hamilton to relinquish his overtaking try, be handed by his teammate, after which handle the hole to Fernando Alonso brilliantly, though he ultimately incurred a penalty for monitor limits.
To understand the dimensions of the difficulty: Hamilton misplaced over 30 seconds within the ultimate 4 laps. He was barely braking, coasting and evenly making use of throttle, needing to deliver temperatures again to acceptable ranges. When Alonso approached on the ultimate lap, Hamilton may speed up and brake for the final three or 4 corners, holding his place on monitor earlier than the penalty. The 2-stop technique was legitimate, but it surely required a automobile able to pushing. In the meantime, considerably understated, Leclerc remarked, “We misplaced 15 seconds within the final 10 laps.” The tempo of the Ferrari quantity 16 was far slower than automobiles behind him, comparable to Hadjar, Bearman, Sainz, Alonso, and others. In brief, Leclerc and Hamilton had been two passengers in a Ferrari experiencing excessive difficulties. As Vasseur put it, “If we don’t clear up the issues, preventing Pink Bull and Mercedes for P2 shall be tough.”
