Leclerc deflated with gap to Verstappen: 'That's a huge difference'

Charles Leclerc wants to forget the Mexican Grand Prix quickly. The Ferrari driver only crossed the finish line in sixth place and had a quiet race. Leclerc calls the difference towards Max Verstappen huge.

Ferrari were a lot slower than usual in Mexico. In Austin, Carlos Sainz still managed pole position, but this weekend Ferrari were far from the pace of Red Bull Racing and Mercedes. The team did have to pay extra attention to the engine on the high-altitude circuit, so Leclerc hopes the poor performance was a one-off.

"For sure, it was a tricky one. The thing that hurts is that I feel we absolutely maximised everything today, and even though we've done that we are one minute away from Max, which is huge. A huge difference. We need to make our bad days better," the Monegasque began in conversation with Sky Sports.

The Ferrari driver hopes to come back stronger in the final two races of the season. Mercedes are just 40 points off Ferrari's P2 in the constructors' championship, so the Italians need two more good results to beat their rivals.

"Whenever we have a bad day on a Sunday, it's really a bad day. I think we have an explanation because it's a bit of a one-off in different conditions, but I hope we can come back to our usual performance in Brazil," Leclerc said.