'Leclerc should have kept that information away from Red Bull'

Despite Charles Leclerc' s victory, Max Verstappen managed to limit the damage in Austria, leaving the Dutchman still 38 points clear of his rival. However, Martin Brundle is convinced that the gap would have been much smaller had Ferrari not had reliability problems.

Both Verstappen and Leclerc have had two dropouts this Formula One season, but the Dutchman's results have been more consistent. However, if it had been purely down to Leclerc's driving skills, the points difference would have been much smaller, Brundle judged in his column for Sky Sports.

Brundle mentions the races in Spain and Baku, where Leclerc crashed out with engine problems. However, he also points to Monaco and Silverstone, where Ferrari completely missed the mark strategically. "Max of course had two retirements in the first three races but Leclerc's pace throughout has been deeply impressive," the former Formula One driver reasons.

According to Brundle, the battle for first place between Verstappen and Leclerc should now be close. "If you wear a neutral F1 cap we are so far being denied another cliffhanger of a championship," the Brit argues.

However, the analyst does note a couple of moments in the final stages of the race where Leclerc could have potentially shot himself in the foot. The Monegasque communicated with his team about a problem with the throttle, which Red Bull Racing were also aware of.

The same was true of race control, who might have forced Ferrari to call Leclerc in for safety reasons. "He might have been better off keeping some radio information away from race control and Red Bull," Brundle said.