Charles Leclerc expects a tough race: "It is difficult to beat Mercedes"

Charles Leclerc believes that Mercedes are the team to beat at the Japanese Grand Prix after they topped the timesheets in FP1 and FP2. However, many believe that Ferrari were not using the full capacity of their engine but we will have to wait and see. 

"It looks like we don't have the speed this weekend," Leclerc said to RaceRans. "Especially since the balance in the car did not feel bad. That is why I was surprised by the delay because we were very strong in the last four races."

"We did not drive our full program as planned, but we did what we could. There is also something to gain in driving because I did not ride well, but it is difficult to beat Mercedes." 

Ferrari fans will hope that Leclerc is playing mind games and that Ferrari are actually going to have a strong race pace on Sunday.