Charles Leclerc: Max Verstappen's Austria overtake good for F1

Charles Leclerc

Leclerc: Verstappen's Austria overtake good for F1

But he's not entirely happy...

Matthew Scott

Friday 12 July 2019 08:27

Charles Leclerc says allowing Max Verstappen's Austrian Grand Prix overtake is "good for Formula 1" but suggested that stewards clearing the Dutchman still rankled slightly.

Verstappen surged from P8 after a wretched start to win in Spielberg, overtaking pole-sitter Leclerc three laps from the end for the lead.

Leclerc was pushed off-track by Verstappen's bold lunge up the inside, but the stewards took no further action against the Dutchman after deliberating for more than three hours.

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Ferrari's message was clear after the race, Verstappen ought to have been sanctioned by the letter of the law in their book.

Leclerc continued on a similar theme, facing the media for the first time since the decision, but said he would be happy if such hard racing was routinely allowed.

"With the incident I don't have any problems and it was very easy for me to move on," said Leclerc.

"The only thing is that I'd like a bit more consistency. I feel like there have been some other incidents in the past which have been less big and that have been penalised.

"If we can race that way, I'm more than happy to race that way - it's good for Formula 1. This is what us drivers want, but we just need to know what we can expect from the others. That's why I'd like probably more consistency in the penalties."

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