On the Albert Park circuit, we only saw red. In his Ferrari, Charles Leclerc, who started from pole position, largely dominated the Australian Grand Prix, the third round of the Formula 1 World Championship season. rarely shone, the Monegasque beat the Mexican Sergio Perez (Red Bull) and the Briton George Russel (Mercedes).
“What a car today! This weekend, we were extremely strong, the tires were excellent, rejoices the winner for his fourth success in F1, the second already this year. I am so happy. It’s amazing to win here. »
To complete his Sunday success, Leclerc also took advantage of the withdrawals of Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull), reigning world champion, victim of a mechanical problem, and Carlos Sainz, his teammate on the prancing horse, to make a small gap in head of the general classification.
“It’s unacceptable when you want to fight for the championship, loose Verstappen, who gave up twice in three outings. It can’t work like that. I don’t accept the situation, we have to work. 46 dots (Editor’s note: which separates him from Leclerc in general), that’s a huge difference. We need a faster car than theirs but we don’t have it yet. It’s going to be complicated. »
Apart from the 27th lap, with a small problem of reacceleration when Verstappen rose inconsequentially to his height after the intervention of the safety car, the driver of the Scuderia was never worried. A sign of the Monegasque’s health walk, he even kept control of the race when he left the pits, choosing to stop after the Red Bulls and Lewis Hamilton, finally fourth with a Mercedes which did not satisfy him…
At the wheel of the F 1-75, Leclerc has now achieved two “hat tricks” (pole position, victory and fastest lap) in three outings… and in his career, after his perfect inaugural weekend in Bahrain. Struggling for several seasons, Ferrari is coming back to life…
“We’re only in the third race, so it’s hard to think about the championship, but we have a very strong and reliable car,” he said. It’s great to be back in this position. »