Ferrari ‘hurt’ by narrow loss to McLaren as F1 title wait goes on
Ferrari left 'hurt' after narrow F1 title failure, writes Lewis Larkam in Abu Dhabi.
Charles Leclerc says it “hurts” Ferrari failed in their bid to win the F1 constructors’ world championship in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Ferrari came into Sunday’s finale knowing they had a mountain to climb to overhaul their 21-point deficit to McLaren after Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had locked out the front row, while Carlos Sainz and Leclerc started third and 19th respectively.
But when Piastri was sent spinning to the back of the field after a first-corner collision with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen - which promoted Sainz into P2 - and Leclerc made huge gains with an incredible opening lap, their title prospects suddenly looked brighter.
Sainz could not challenge Norris for the win and had to settle with second, while Leclerc turned in a stunning fight back to complete the podium in third place. However it was not enough as Ferrari lost out on the title by 14 points to McLaren.
“I knew I had to be very aggressive,” Leclerc said. “So I knew that in lap one, I had to take all the risks possible in order to gain as many places as possible, to then be in a good position for the rest of the race.
“But then, unfortunately, we were just starting too far back to do anything better than what we've done today. I think we've done the maximum.
“It hurts, obviously, because the season was so close until the end. It was a hard hit on Friday when we knew we had the penalty. We still gave it all and we just came short of our goal, which is a shame. But at the end, we've tried everything.”
Sainz, who is leaving Ferrari and joining Williams for 2025, echoed Leclerc’s assessment, admitting it is a “bittersweet” feeling to narrowly miss out on the championship.
“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,” the Spaniard said.
“I gave it everything, especially the first stint. It looked like we could hang on to 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.
“But congratulations, first of all, to McLaren. 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 be proud of the effort and the championship we put together. It's been a tough year, but definitely a year where we need to be proud of.”
Vasseur frustrated but proud
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vaster admitted it was frustrating to get so close to delivering a title back to Maranello and ending the Italian outfit’s 16-year wait for major F1 silverware.
“A good one, but not enough,” Vasseur summarised. “I think that if you compare with one year ago, it’s a huge step forward.
"Every single KPI, everything is great, and we did a good one in terms of pit stops strategy, reliability, we improved everywhere, even in terms of pure performance.
“It’s true that at the end, 14 points are missing, and I think if you are 80 or 100 points behind, you don’t feel the frustration. !4 points that you have, or at least tonight, I had tons of races in my mind, where we lost 14 points this season.
“But it is like it is. McLaren also had some issues, and we have to do a better job next year, but I’m also quite proud of the step that we did.”
Lewis regularly attends Grands Prix for Crash.net around the world. Often reporting on the action from the ground, Lewis tells the stories of the people who matter in the sport.
