Charles Leclerc refuses to give up on F1 title despite Q2 exit: “I believe in miracles”
"But I see an opportunity to do something very special and I’ll do my best to do it."
Charles Leclerc is refusing to give up on Ferrari’s hopes of winning the 2024 F1 constructors’ championship despite his Q2 exit at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Leclerc was a shock early elimination in qualifying at the Yas Marina Circuit after his best lap time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
To compound Leclerc’s disappointment, he is set to start from the back of the grid due to a 10-place grid penalty for an engine change.
Reflecting on qualifying, Leclerc said: “Not so good after a qualifying like that. We were a little bit better. It’s true that I don’t think we would have managed to beat the McLarens, they seemed too strong, but 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. We are not making our life any easier. However it motivates me to do something very special tomorrow.
“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 obviously it’s going to be hard.”
Even without Leclerc’s lap deletion and engine penalty, the odds are heavily in McLaren’s favour.
McLaren are 21 points ahead of Ferrari going into Sunday’s race.
This means Ferrari need a 1-2 finish with McLaren’s drivers classifying fourth and fifth at best.
Leclerc says he believes “in miracles” despite his lowly starting position for the race.
“I believe in miracles,” he added. “It makes our life very difficult, that’s for sure. But with the 10-place grid penalty it was always going to be difficult. But 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.”
Ferrari expect to be “in a better position”
Ferrari have typically performed better on race day this year, which is in stark contrast to 2023.
Leclerc is confident Ferrari will be in a “better position” in the race relative to qualifying.
“The race pace was OK, but McLaren seemed to be a lot stronger,” he added. “We’ve changed the car quite a bit since FP3. I think we went in the right direction.
“If anything, our tyre degradation is better than others’, so I would expect to be in a better position.”
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