F1 News
Leclerc and Sainz left disappointed: 'Did everything possible'
McLaren can celebrate in Abu Dhabi after they won the constructors' championship. For Ferrari, the mood will be different, as a both drivers finishing on the podium was not enough. Both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were left disappointed after the Abu Dhabi GP.
It's been a rollercoaster of a season for Ferrari. Thanks to finding form once again during the final period of the season, the Italians still had a shot at the constructors' title entering this weekend. Even after a worse qualifying result, they could put pressure on their Woking-based rivals, but Lando Norris could secure the title for McLaren with crossing the finish line in first position.
Ferrari drivers left disappointed
Starting from P19, Leclerc knew he had to take more risks. "I knew I had to be very aggressive, so on Lap 1, I took all the risks possible to gain as many places as possible to be in a good position for the rest of the race. Unfortunately, we were starting too far back to do anything better than what we did," began the driver who finished third in Abu Dhabi.
The Monegasque continued, "I think we did the maximum. It hurts when a season is so close until the end. It was a hard hit on Friday and we gave it our all and we just come short of our goal. It's a shame but we gave it everything."
Sainz finished his final Grand Prix for Ferrari in second position: "Obviously, a bit of a bittersweet feeling in the end P2 I think was the maximum we could do today given the pace of Lando in the McLaren. I gave it everything, especially the first stint. It looked like we could hang onto them, then as soon as we put the hard tyres, they just seemed to be that one or two tenths quicker per lap, like we’ve seen all weekend, and they just got a bit out of reach."
The Spaniard did congratulate his former team. "They deserve this championship. They’ve been rock solid in the last two-thirds of the championship and they’ve been incredible. From our side, I think we can proud of the effort and the championship that we put together. It’s been a tough year but definitely a year that we need to be proud of, and hopefully be back here soon."
This article was written in collaboration with Cas van de Kleut
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels!