Charles Leclerc predicts Red Bull to “step up” after Canada amid recent struggles

Charles Leclerc remains adamant that Red Bull will return to their dominant form when F1 returns to conventional circuits later this month.

Red Bull have struggled for performance relatively speaking in recent rounds.

Max Verstappen was out-paced by Lando Norris at the Miami Grand Prix after the McLaren driver fortunately took the lead through the Safety Car.

It was a similar story at Imola as Verstappen delivered a masterclass to take pole and the victory, finishing just 0.7s ahead of Norris.

Last time out in Monaco, it was Leclerc who came out on top as Verstappen could only finish sixth following a rare error in qualifying.

With this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix track relatively bumpy and kerb riding necessary to be quick, Red Bull are expected to be beatable once again.

While Leclerc thinks this will be the case, he feels Red Bull’s recent troubles will be short lived when F1 heads to Barcelona.

“We are about to have three races in a row, including this one (Canada), where kerb riding and bumps are important," Leclerc said. “Bumps are not so big here but kerb riding is a big thing. I think we will see a similar trend at this race but from Barcelona onwards, Red Bull will do a step up. I hope that's not the case.

“We've done a good job when we look at the first part of our season considering we have been a step behind Red Bull. We are not that far, and we haven't lost many points, and that's the most important thing.

“We just need to keep focusing on ourselves, and hopefully bring new parts as quickly as possible to close the gap at tracks that are a bit more normal for Red Bull and put them under a bit more pressure.”

Leclerc sits just 31 points behind Verstappen in the drivers’ championship after eight rounds.

The six-time winner believes Ferrari will have an “opportunity” this weekend to win.

“Over the years, what we have been missing to win was a car that was good enough to win," Leclerc added. “Last year, we struggled in qualifying. We were very fast in the race, but we started too far away. This year, I believe there could be an opportunity.

“As I said, I don't think it [the track] highlights Red Bull's strengths, so it might be an opportunity for us.

“We will be very closely matched with McLaren and Red Bull. We've got to maximise everything and then at the end of the weekend, the result will be better than the ones we've seen in past years.”