Leclerc concedes Ferrari has 'a lot of work to do'

Charles Leclerc has insisted Ferrari has "a lot of work to do" to catch Red Bull after finishing third at the Belgian Grand Prix.

The Monégasque driver started from pole at Spa-Francorchamps but was overhauled by Sergio Perez at the end of the Kemmel Straight on the opening lap.

Max Verstappen eventually usurped both drivers, opening out a 32.2-second gap over the Ferrari by the end of the race despite starting from sixth.

"We have had quite a positive weekend on our side in terms of pace," said Leclerc.

"The race went good on my side but a shame for Carlos because we had a good pace.

"When you look at the Red Bull, we still have a lot of work to do, especially on race pace because with degradation, they are still quite far ahead."

Fuel saving

Leclerc's battle was with Lewis Hamilton for the final podium spot and having held the Mercedes at arm's length for most of the race, conservation at the end of the race provided concerns for the Ferrari driver.

Hamilton eventually pitted on the penultimate lap to sow up the fastest lap bonus points and asked whether he felt confident he could retain the podium, Leclerc replied: "Yes, until I was told to do some fuel saving - this was quite big at the end of the race.

"There I was struggling a bit more but the pace was there to keep him behind and then I knew he was going to pit for the fastest lap, which made my life a little bit easier."