Ferrari buoyed by brilliant race pace on a difficult weekend
Ferrari drivers were delighted after the Dutch Grand Prix, having displayed an encouraging performance after a disastrous qualifying session on Saturday.
Ferrari didn’t have the pace to compete in qualifying, but their race pace was much stronger. Having qualified sixth a full second behind pole-sitter Lando Norris, Charles Leclerc overtook Sergio Perez at the start.
The Monegasque then spent the opening stages of the race behind George Russell and Oscar Piastri until Ferrari executed a brilliant strategy move, calling Leclerc in for his pit stop earlier than his two direct rivals.
With the undercut move, Leclerc emerged in P3 after the first round of pit stops, and he was able to fend off the attacks from Piastri despite being on nine laps older tyres.
"It’s not often that I would say I am happy with a P3, but today, I am extremely happy with the job the team has done on such a difficult weekend. We struggled in all sessions since FP1, and managed to put it all together when it matters most.
“We found the pace we needed, executed a perfect strategy, undercut our competitors and kept them behind. It feels great to start the second half of the season like this.
"Next up is Monza, our home race. We will give it our all to make our tifosi proud there."
His team-mate Carlos Sainz started from P10 after a difficult qualifying session, but managed to perform several overtakes on the track.
The Spaniard was surprised to have been able to beat the Mercedes drivers and the Red Bull of Sergio Perez after the difficult opening days at Zandvoort.
"This is a good result as we didn't expect to have such a positive race, especially after a very difficult start to the weekend. We executed a very solid race all along with good overtakes on track and a fast pace, especially with the hard tyre once I cleared the cars ahead.
"Charles also had a very good Sunday and I'm happy for the team. We'll definitely arrive in Monza in high spirits and I can’t wait to race in front of our tifosi!"
