Charles Leclerc

Why Leclerc asked Vettel to speed up in France qualifying

He ended up four spots ahead of Seb.

Matthew Scott

Saturday 22 June 2019 17:29

Charles Leclerc has explained that concerns over his ability to start in final Q3 lap in time before the chequered flag fell were behind him asking Ferrari to tell team-mate Sebastian Vettel to drive faster in qualifying for the French Grand Prix.

Leclerc secured third place on the grid for Ferrari, while Vettel could only go seventh-quickest at Paul Ricard.

The 21-year-old had to twice ask for Vettel to speed up, with the German grumpily replying each time that he was not trying to compromise his team-mate.

Asked if he had concerns that Vettel would affect his lap, Leclerc replied: "No, not at all.

"The only thing is that I think twice, I can't remember when exactly, we were very tight on time to go through the finish line.

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"So that's why I asked the team to say to Seb to just push, because I would be very tight on time, so that was the only reason. But no, he of course didn't compromise my qualifying."

It was just the second time that Leclerc has outqualified Vettel in 2019, after his pole position in Bahrain.

The Monegasque had lamented recent efforts in Q3, which saw his pace gradually decline, so he was delighted to pick it up in Paul Ricard.

He said: "I was completely aware that my weak point in the last few grands prix was putting the car in right window for Q3, so I worked on that and happy to see improvement."

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