International media: 'Leclerc and Ferrari help Verstappen to second World Championship'.

The international media is worried about the number of mistakes made by Ferrari and now Charles Leclerc himself. According to the foreign newspapers it is impossible to keep Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing from winning both world titles in 2022. After the French Grand Prix, the Italian racing team and the current number two in the world championship were especially criticised.

La Gazzetta dello Sport

Italy's biggest sports newspaper hands out a 9 to Max Verstappen, who was able to drive to victory for the seventh time this season. "To win the title you have to win races and not make mistakes. He has learned the lesson well over the years and today he is an infallible driver. He puts pressure on Leclerc and eventually reaps the rewards."

Making no mistakes is something Leclerc failed to do in 2022. In Imola he already spun unnecessarily and missed out on expensive World Championship points, but in France the consequences were even greater than that. For that he earns a rating of 4. "He dominates from the beginning keeping an unleashed Max at bay, then goes to crash to respond to the rivals' times before the pit stop. It is "only" the second mistake of 2022, but very heavy." says the pink newspaper.

Marca

In Spain, they noted that Verstappen did not actually have to do much to secure victory at Paul Ricard. He is awarded a 9 for his performance Sunday afternoon."They [Ferrari and Leclerc] put the win in his lap, he didn't even have to fight for it at the start, he faked it a bit in the first laps, but they keep helping him to be crowned two-time champion."

Ferrari then gets a 1 from the paper and Leclerc even has to settle for a 0. "Again unreliability with Leclerc, because the accelerator comes and goes, bad pit stop with Carlos, worse with the strategy in the radio messages and the third stop. A bad day at the office."

L'Equipe

The French L'Equipe believes that Ferrari themselves are ruining their chances of a world title. "Three victories transformed into zero points, two other flukes because of strategic choices plus reliability problems, the total of points left on the road by Charles Leclerc can make you dizzy for ten Grands Prix... Instead of 60 points behind Verstappen, the Monegasque could have as much lead at the moment among the drivers. If we add the points lost by Carlos Sainz, Ferrari would also be a very solid leader among manufacturers. Instead, both championships seem to elude the Scuderia every weekend a little more."

Not only would the drivers' standings have been led by a Ferrari driver, the Italian racing stable would also have been in first place among the constructors. "If we add Carlos Sainz 's points, Ferrari would have led comfortably in the constructors' standings. Instead, both championships seem to slip away from the Scuderia a little more each weekend. Leclerc has lost at least 116 points, Sainz at least 62 points lost."

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In Germany, they see that with ten Grands Prix to go, it is becoming increasingly difficult for Leclerc to grab the title. "Everything went according to plan for Charles Leclerc (24) – but in the end, the winner is Max Verstappen (24) ... After the race, however, the Monegasque spoke of the fact that it had been his mistake and that they could not win the World Championship like that. But Leclerc also added that it was "a bit strange" that the rear had broken out. The balance of the car was not right. The team will have to analyze the exact cause in the coming days."

"However, the frustration over the end is understandable. For the World Championship runner-up, a victory would have been enormously important. Not only because it is probably the last French race, which is virtually a home Grand Prix for the Monegasque, for the foreseeable future. Leclerc needs every win to narrow the gap to Verstappen in the fight for the World Championship."

The Sun:

In Britain, they simply see Max Verstappen as the better driver at the moment. "Although Leclerc possesses a prodigious talent, in his four years in F1 he has a tendency to 'overdrive' at times and that seemed to be the case here again on Sunday. As much as Ferrari is responsible for costly and questionable strategy calls - such as blowing their chances at Silverstone - as well as reliability problems, this time it was Leclerc who was at fault."