Charles Leclerc took pole position at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and led the race after an early pit stop under the virtual safety car , before a power unit problem caused him to lose track speed.
The Monegasque returned to the pits as best he could and retired from the race, which was his second retirement in the last three races, after a failure in the turbo and in the MGU-H left him sidelined in Spain, also when he was leading the test.
The battle for the drivers’ championship between Leclerc and his Red Bull Racing rival Max Verstappen has taken an 80-point turnaround in the last five races. Verstappen now leads Leclerc by 34 units, while Sergio Pérez is now second in the standings, 21 behind his Red Bull teammate.
The retirement meant that Leclerc has failed to convert any of his last four pole positions into a win, with his second-place finish in Miami being the only podium finish in that span. As well as having to retire twice, Leclerc finished fourth in Monaco after struggling with strategy and blue flags.
Speaking after the race in Baku, Leclerc said it was “just as difficult” to accept retirement, and that it felt like a third straight zero, given the Monaco result.
“It’s a third disappointment in a row, and it’s not easy,” Leclerc acknowledged.
“But yes, overall, I am confident that mentally I will be as strong as I was five races ago, when I was leading the championship, in the next race, and the motivation is still there.”
“But we have to stay on top of those things. And obviously reliability is something we have to focus on after the last three races.”
“As a team, we have to maybe take a step forward on that.”
Asked by Motorsport.com if he feared for his title aspirations, given the pace he was losing ground to Verstappen, Leclerc replied: “I think we can still win the championship, but we have to fix those things.” He also stated that the problems had not affected his faith or trust in the team.
Leclerc’s retirement compounded Ferrari’s suffering on a difficult day in Baku, after team-mate Carlos Sainz was also stopped by a hydraulic failure.
The double retirement, combined with Red Bull’s top points, means Ferrari is now 80 points off the lead in the constructors’ standings.
“After the last few races, I think we have shown that we have lost too many points there and we have to analyze it,” concluded Leclerc.
