Leclerc disagrees with Verstappen: 'I know I'm an outsider'
Photo: Race Pictures
Updated: 16:07, 09 May
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Kada Sárközi joined GPblog as an editor ahead of the 2023 Formula 1 season. He graduated with a BA in Sports Journalism in the UK and has covered Grands Prix and other F1 events live.
Charles Leclerc continues to be an 'outsider' on the grid. The Monegasque driver enjoys the current style of racing on Sundays, although he acknowledges that improvements can still be made.
While Max Verstappen explained that the regulations still feel the same after the first tweaks introduced for Miami, Leclerc said it was a step in the right direction. He explained to GPblog, among others: "The battles in itself, I don't think those changed massively. In qualifying, some things changed. Then the regulation will remain the regulations. I mean, we cannot do a revolution in the middle of the year. But it was a step on the right direction. A little bit, yes. It was a little bit better to drive naturally."
Leclerc continues to enjoy 2026 wheel-to-wheel battles
Previously, Verstappen also compared racing to Mario Kart. According to Leclerc, racing is not as bad as others describe it. He continued: "I’ve always disagreed a little bit with that. I know I'm a bit of an outsider on the grid but I felt that at least for the fights I've had with the guys in front, when you’ve got cars that have a system in a similar way to yours, actually the overtaking is really good. It's a bit more strategic than last year.
"But last year was also strategic with the DRS. If you wanted to overtake at a certain point, to have the DRS or to not have it and to pull away. So I don't think it changed significantly. Surely the qualifying is where there's the biggest focus point, and it's right that it's that way."
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Still, he believes it can still be improved. "Yeah, surely there's still to fine-tune the system, ways to try and use the system in a better way and optimise that. It's not always natural what you've got to do inside the car. So yeah, there's still some improvements to be made."
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Friday 26.06.26
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11:30 AM
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Friday 26.06.26
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