Charles Leclerc says the pressure of delivering for Ferrari at their home event played no part in his late-race spin during the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Leclerc, as the only Ferrari driver left in the race following Carlos Sainz's early retirement, was hunting down the Red Bull of Sergio Perez when he made a mistake and slid off the track. That allowed Lando Norris and George Russell to move ahead, costing Leclerc valuable points in his quest to become World Champion. It meant a disappointing conclusion to Ferrari's weekend on home soil, with Red Bull cutting into the lead the Italian team had built in the standings.
Leclerc vows to learn from costly mistake
Leclerc was pushing hard on new Soft tyres, roared on by the Italian fans, when he made his mistake, giving the impression that the pressure had got to him. But Leclerc disagreed that there was pressure being felt when he discussed the incident with select members of the media, including RacingNews365.com . He said: "No, there wasn't. That's what I think at least. Obviously, we've had pressure, not only today, but for the whole weekend. I don't think I've done many mistakes before today. "It was the mistake that cost me a lot and I'll learn from it. But no, on my side there was no particular added pressure whatsoever."
"Every points counts so it won't happen again"
Leclerc has made mistakes during his short F1 career but has often proved strong at learning from them and ensuring that they do not happen again. "Maybe this one is a bit different," he admitted, as he took a moment to reflect. "I mean, it's one of those mistakes where it's just the mental approach that you had at that particular moment of the race, but I've always been strong at knowing exactly which particular feeling I felt at that moment of the race and knowing how to correct it. "Again, it's a mistake, but I'll learn from it and won't do it again. And with the mistake, actually, I've only lost seven points to what I could have scored. But it's seven points that could be valuable at the end of the season." He added: "Every point counts when you're fighting for the title, so it won't happen again."
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