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Leclerc: We need to make better use of tyres to catch Mercedes

Leclerc: We need to make better use of tyres to catch Mercedes

23-05-2019 18:44
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Bobby Vincent

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has conceded that Mercedes are "quite ahead" of the Italian side on Thursday, and believes making better use of the tyres will help the team catch its title rivals.

Leclerc could only manage 10th-fastest in FP2 at his home race in Monaco. There were some underlying issues with Leclerc's SF90, but the aspect that really hurt the 21-year-old was not making the most of the tyres.

"We have seen that moving from the right window of tyre use to the wrong one is really a moment, it takes very little," Leclerc explained to Motorsport.com. "This morning, we used the tyres pretty well even though we had to improve.

"This afternoon was much more difficult. We must work, be more consistent and try to put the tyres in the appropriate window of use."

Leclerc was very honest when talking about how much quicker Mercedes were in comparison to Ferrari, but insisted it's best that his team just "focus on ourselves" instead of getting caught up in the Silver Arrows' dominance.

"The Mercedes is pretty ahead of us right now, but we have to focus on ourselves," Leclerc admitted. "Later, we will see, but surely the target is to recover on the Mercedes over this weekend."