Ferrari: 'Simulations show Leclerc would have easy beaten Verstappen'

Ferrari made a bad turn in Azerbaijan, both Charles Leclerc's and Carlos Sainz's cars crashed out during the race. According to Ferrari engineer Inaki Rueda, the disappointment is very big, because Leclerc would probably have beaten Verstappen by a wide margin.

Things first went wrong for Sainz in Baku with a hydraulic problem. In a debrief on LinkedIn, Rueda explains that Sainz was on a reverse strategy to his three front runners. Ferrari and Red Bull Racing are very evenly matched, which is why the races are often decided in the DRS zones this season, according to the engineer. The team had therefore taken measures in Baku and improved the rear wing of the Ferrari F1-75. The improvements were of no use when it turned out that Leclerc too had to abandon his race due to engine problems.

'Leclerc had won well over Verstappen'

During the Virtual Safety Car that was set after Sainz's elimination, Leclerc managed to gain a lot of time with the pit stop. Rueda says that stop to the hard tyre would have been the only one for Leclerc, putting the Monegasque on course for victory. "Red Bull tried to continue on the medium tyre as long as possible, but it quickly declined sharply. Perez lost a lot of time by just going through and staying in front of Leclerc."

The Ferrari technician is extra bummed by Leclerc's retirement after the eleventh lap. Rueda: "Our simulations show that without that retirement - and if there had not been another Virtual Safety Car - Leclerc would have won the race comfortably from Verstappen."