Charles Leclerc is holding on to the hope that a "miracle" could still deliver the F1 Constructors' Championship to Ferrari in Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, even though he'll be starting from the back of the grid.
Leclerc's weekend – already impacted by a 10-place grid penalty linked to an energy store change on his car on Friday – took a turn for the worse in qualifying at Yas Marina when a track limits violation left him stranded in Q2.
With McLaren locking out the front row and Ferrari trailing its rival by 21 points in the standings, the Italian outfit will definitely require a divine intervention to pull off miraculous comeback and triumph.
“I believe in miracles,” Leclerc said after Saturday's session, which his teammate Carlos Sainz concluded third.
However, he was quick to acknowledge the difficulty of the task ahead.
“Qualifying makes our life very difficult, that's for sure. But with the 10-place grid penalty, it was always going to be difficult," he added.
Despite the tough odds, Leclerc remained steadfast in his belief that anything could happen.
“I see an opportunity to do something very special and I'll do my best to do it. I'll believe in it until the very last lap. Anything can happen,” he said, showing a determination that has been a hallmark of his career.
Leclerc admitted that his qualifying session had been far from perfect. A mistake at Turn 1, where he went wide, saw him miss out on advancing to the top-10 shootout and ultimately led to his early
Q2 exit.
“It's obviously very difficult. But it's very difficult for everyone and I was on the wrong side of things in Q2 so I can only blame myself,” he reflected.
©Ferrari
The Ferrari driver did not believe he could have beaten McLaren's pace in qualifying, acknowledging that “they seemed too strong.” However, he also felt there was potential for a higher position.
“We could have been fourth. It was either P15 or P20 and P15 is better than P20. But if I get my laptime deleted it means we start from P20,” he said.
With the qualifying disappointment behind him, Leclerc expressed that Ferrari's title hopes had not been extinguished.
“We are not making our life any easier. However, it motivates me to do something very special tomorrow,” he said.
“My goal remains the same: it's to win the Constructors' Championship and I still believe in it as much as I did yesterday, even though on paper it's obviously going to be hard.”
©Ferrari
In terms of race pace, Leclerc believed Ferrari had improved.
“The race pace was OK, but McLaren seemed to be a lot stronger. We've changed the car quite a bit since FP3. I think we went in the right direction.
“If anything, our tire degradation is better than others, so I would expect to be in a better position,” he explained.
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