P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Leclerc: "Strange" Ferrari struggled on hard tyres in F1 Chinese GP
Despite losing position at the start to George Russell and battling with Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc made early progress using a one-stop strategy to reach fourth place. However, Ferrari’s anticipated strong performance against Red Bull did not materialize, with both Leclerc and Sainz failing to make further headway. Leclerc finished the race in fourth place, trailing Sergio Perez by 4.5 seconds and Lando Norris by nearly 10 seconds. Struggling to comprehend Ferrari’s loss of pace on the hard tires, Leclerc expressed surprise at the significant drop in performance compared to previous races. Despite aiming to challenge Norris for a potential runner-up spot after his pitstop, Leclerc found himself unable to match the pace of McLaren and Red Bull on the hard compound. The unexpected difficulties faced by Ferrari during the race left Leclerc and the team puzzled and determined to investigate the underlying reasons for their performance struggles.
