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1 – Charles LECLERC (Ferrari)
2 – Oscar PIASTRI (McLaren)
3 – Carlos SAINZ (Ferrari)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by Loïc Duval)
Q: Charles, it’s your third pole position here at home in Monaco. The laps
looked amazing. How was it out there?
Charles LECLERC: It was nice. The feeling after a qualifying lap is always
very special here. Really, really happy about the lap. The excitement is so
high that it feels really good. However, I know more often than not in the
past, qualifying is not everything. As much as it helps a lot for Sunday's
race, we need to put everything together coming Sunday. And in the past
years, we didn't manage to do so. But we are a stronger team. We are in a
stronger position. And I'm sure we can achieve great things tomorrow. And
obviously, the win is the target.
Q: So what do you need then? You know, there's less than 200 metres from the
first row to the first corner. Then there is a long race, of course. You
know that it didn't turn out your way in the past years. What do you need to
make sure that this time is going to be the day?
CL: I need a good launch. I need a good launch off the grid. And then once
we do that, then hopefully Carlos can have a great start and follow me into
Turn 1 and be 1-2. And if we are 1-2, then we can manage that as a team.
That would be the perfect scenario. But whatever happens, we just need to
bring that victory home.
Q: All right. Congratulations and thank you. Guys, here's the Prince of
Monaco. Charles is in pole position for tomorrow's race.
CL: Perfect. Thank you very much. Thank you. Merci à tous, vraiment.
Q: Oscar, really close to the first pole here in Monaco. We can see the
momentum coming with the team everywhere. You're getting better, better.
It's so close. So what was missing today to get that pole?
Oscar PIASTRI: Good question. I mean, I think if you took the second half of
my first lap in Q3 and the first half of the second one, it would have been
enough. But, yeah, just a couple of mistakes at the end. But, you know,
credit to Charles. He's been incredibly quick all weekend. At certain
points, I don't think anyone thought we were going to get close to him. So,
yeah, nice to be starting on the front row. I feel like it's been a good
weekend in terms of building momentum. And, yeah, what better colours to do
it in than these?
Q: What are you going to do tomorrow to try to beat the home hero here? Is
it at the start? Is it all about strategy? We know that it's difficult to
overtake, so what do you need to make this happen?
OP: A bit of both. I mean, a good start always helps. And if you can get
into the lead, then you can control it very easily around here. So that's
probably the first goal. And if not, then with strategy. Because, yeah, as
optimistic as I want to be, overtaking around here is not easy. So we'll try
our best, but starting from a good spot and yeah, a chance for a good day
tomorrow.
Q: Carlos, P1 and P3 for Ferrari, third position for you. Still, everything
is possible from there, of course. The car looks really, really good today.
How much risk did you have to take to make this happen?
Carlos SAINZ: Yeah, I think overall it was an improvement for me. I've been
struggling all weekend with confidence and feeling with the car. So overall,
to step it up and be P3 was a step forward. Obviously not entirely happy
because I wish I could have been fighting for pole position. But the truth
is that Charles has been doing an outstanding job. The car has been amazing
all this weekend and he managed to extract the most out of it. And yeah, I'm
happy for him.
Q: How is the car in long runs? Of course, it's all about qualifying, but
you still have a race to do. How is the car in long runs? Do you think that
you have something in the pocket to beat at least one McLaren?
CS: Yeah, definitely. Yesterday, I looked very quick on the long run, so for
some reason, this weekend, I've been struggling on the short runs, and the
long run seemed much better, which is something we will need to look into,
but I'm confident that tomorrow the pace in the long run will be good. It's
just a matter of track position here, and we've lost it with not a great
quali position. But, you know, it's Monaco. Anything can happen, like
always, and we will give it our best shot, but the priority will be to win
with Charles tomorrow.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Very well done, Charles. What a lap. You saved your best until last.
First up, how special does it feel to take another pole here at home in
Monaco?
CL: It feels as good as the first one. I think in Monaco, the emotions you
get, the tension that you have before getting into the car is so much more
than anywhere else on the calendar. So yeah, once you finish the lap and you
hear that you're on pole position, it's always a very special feeling.
However, maybe in the past the emotions were staying for longer, but now
obviously having started twice on pole and not bringing the victory, which
is at the end what matters the most, is where my mind is at the moment, just
trying to prepare and make everything possible. It's been a bit of a roller
coaster. The weekend has been incredible until after FP3 where there was an
issue with my engine and there was an engine swap at the very last minute,
which was quite tricky. But fortunately for me, there wasn't any consequence
for my weekend.
Q: We will come on to the race in a second, but how smooth was that session
for you? And at one point you came on the radio and said there was a problem
with the pedals, I think. Could you just clarify what that was about?
CL: Yeah, I mean, I felt something strange, but actually after that, the
feeling was fine.
Q: What about the session then? Did it build as you'd hoped going into
qualifying?
CL: No, no, we were... In Q1 it was very tricky, I took that sticker, that
sponsor sticker on the lap. That was pretty important at that time, which
slowed us down quite a bit. Then we pitted, we took off the sponsor banner
from the front wing, we went again. So that was already quite tricky,
because in qualifying in Monaco you just want to be out and just do normal
laps, so I was just praying for no yellow flags or red flags after that.
Luckily for me, it was okay. Then in Q2, we struggled a little bit more with
the balance of the car. I couldn't find the right feeling. But then in Q3,
we did some modifications, especially with the front wing and the tools and
my driving, and then I found the pace again, so I was a little bit happier
in Q3. But the feeling was, for some reason, a bit better in FP2, FP3.
Q: Is this the best Ferrari you've driven through these streets?
CL: I think 2022, I unfortunately couldn't finish the lap in Q3, the second
lap in Q3, because there was the red flag for Checo. I think this would have
been quite a bit better, and I think the car was in an even better place
back then, because it was a very smooth qualifying. It's all about the
build-up in Monaco, and maybe in [this] qualifying we didn't have the
smoothest of build-up, but that doesn't mean I'm not happy with the lap. I'm
extremely happy with the lap. I'm very, very happy with the car and it's
been a really good weekend until now. But as I said, we shouldn't get
carried away with the pole position.
Q: So how are you approaching the race tomorrow?
CL: As always, we just try to approach every race the same. Obviously,
having in mind that it's Monaco here, track position is very important, and
we'll try to maximise our race and take that victory. Yeah, all of what I
said is very obvious, but we are just trying to approach it as a normal
race, and that's what we'll do.
Q: How easy is it to protect pole position on the run to Sainte-Devote?
CL: Well, I didn't see many times people losing into Turn 1, so I guess it's
a very short run down to Turn 1. But never say never. Obviously, we'll focus
on the start and we'll see what happens.
Q: Very well done today. Thank you, Charles. Oscar, let's come to you now.
Great job by you. You've split the Ferraris here at Monaco. How satisfied
are you with that session?
OP: Yeah, I think on the whole, very happy with it. We were struggling a
little bit through the weekend. We didn't really know quite where we sat. A
bit of work to do after FP3, but the car felt very good in qualifying. I
think the last lap of Q3, there are a few corners I wish I could have again,
but yeah, when you're pushing so hard, it's kind of inevitable that there's
going to be mistakes here and there. So no, very happy with it. I think the
pace in the car was good. And yeah, I think for a Monaco qualifying, it went
reasonably smoothly. I hit the wall pretty hard in Q2, so that was a bit of
a scare. Apart from that, it was a smooth qualifying and happy to be on the
front row and hopefully staying on the front row this week.
Q: You say there are a couple of corners which you wished you could have
again. The gap between you and Charles was a couple of tenths. Can you
visualise where you lost that time?
OP: Yeah, I think Turn 5 and Turn 10, the chicane after the tunnel, were not
my best. I think the rest of the lap was pretty solid, just struggled a
little bit in those two corners. Whether it would have been enough for pole,
I'm not sure. Yeah, I mean, for me, it's pretty pointless saying if you
could have done... Max summed it up very well a few weeks ago. I won't
repeat it, but it's a good analogy, and I think everybody can say the same.
So, yeah, pretty happy with it on the whole.
Q: And, Oscar, this is your second P2 in consecutive weeks on very different
race tracks. Does this mean that you and McLaren can now be quick
everywhere?
OP: Yes, I think so. I think we came into this weekend pretty confident that
we could be in the fight for pole and the win again. I think going into
qualifying, maybe we weren't as convinced this week, but no, it felt good.
Yeah, pretty hooked up in qualifying. And I think for me, you know, we say
Imola and Monaco are very different circuits, but both of them need a lot of
commitment. You know, Imola, you get it a bit wrong, you're in the gravel
trap and the wall. Here, there's no gravel trap, it's just the wall. So
they're both two pretty big commitment tracks, obviously here being a step
above everywhere. But yeah, maybe a bit more similar than people think.
Q: Alright, and Oscar, final one. What about tomorrow then, the race? Where
do the opportunities lie for you?
OP: I mean, the run to Turn 1 is always your best chance at any track. Here,
obviously, it's a very short run, like we know. Yeah, the strategy, you can
try something because unless there's a massive pace difference, which I'm
pretty sure there won't be, then overtaking is impossible here. So, yeah,
it'll be won or lost in the pits, probably. So make sure we have a good day.
Q: Alright, very well done to you. Thank you. Carlos, coming to you now.
Great job as well. Look, just sum up the session as a whole, first of all.
CS: Well, just summing up the weekend in general, it's been a bit of a
struggle for me right from the beginning. I haven't been as confident as I
normally am around Monaco and I haven't been at my best. Luckily, we stepped
it up for quali and in quali I was feeling one step better. Unfortunately,
it was a bit too late and I was still lacking those last couple of tenths
from confidence. Anyway, very happy to see Charles putting it on pole and
the team having such a strong car around Monaco and being in a position to
win the race with Charles tomorrow. Overall, I think I'm very happy for the
team. A bit unfortunate that the weekend that I've struggled the most with
the car has to be in Monaco, where qualifying is so important.
Q: What have been the issues with the car?
CS: Just a lack of confidence. Like Oscar was saying, you need a lot of
commitment around here, and maybe this lack of confidence around another
track would be half a tenth to a tenth of commitment. In Monaco means it's
two or three tenths. Luckily for quali, as I said, i stepped it up and I was
a bit closer but there were stages of the weekend that I was really, really
lacking, really struggling, which is a bit of a new thing for me around
Monaco because I've normally felt really comfortable around here. So
something we will have to look into. but yeah, keeping the positives, we
managed to save the weekend with a with a decent couple of laps in Q3, and
we will go from there tomorrow.
Q: Carlos, sorry to dwell on it, but it's an interesting point. What is the
car doing that is not giving you the confidence you need?
CS: Just a bit of inconsistency. I've had a lot of moments in practice, and
when you have so many moments of nearly touching the wall, nearly having a
session over when you're so close to the walls, this immediately takes away
confidence. And I've had a lot of those during the practice, and it meant
that for some reason I was just lacking confidence from then onwards. But,
yeah, just losing the rear in places where you don't expect to lose it and
then never getting quite close to the walls as I wish, because I had to
leave myself a bit of margin in case the rear was snapping on me. So, yeah,
as I said, not ideal, but we managed to save it.
Q: OK, and you've just said you'd like to see Charles win the race tomorrow.
How confident are you of getting ahead of Oscar, at the very least?
CS: We will see what we can do at the start, what we can do with strategy in
order to do every single bit possible to help Charles to go and get that
win. He's been driving amazing all weekend. I think part of that delta comes
from Charles also being super committed and having a particularly strong
weekend. This weekend I think he's been on it since FP1 and he's been
extremely quick. So yeah, we will do everything we can to win the race
tomorrow.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Question to Charles, please. First of all,
congratulations on pole position. You mentioned the changes you made ahead
of Q3 on the front wing and the steering wheel tools. I just wondered, how
did it feel different around the lap? Was there a couple of particular
places or just better everywhere?
CL: No, it felt better everywhere. I think what we struggled with the most
coming to quali and the thing that is most difficult to actually counter,
which normally we always try to anticipate the new conditions, but one thing
you cannot really anticipate is that you are going faster through a corner.
And that means with the bumps they are in Monaco, the wheel lifting and just
the amount of time you pass in the air with the wheels not touching the
ground is just quite a bit more compared to FP3 because of the increased
speed around the corners. And that made it a lot more tricky to actually
feel the balance and to just be on the limit and be consistent. So I was a
little bit less consistent. Then I started to be a bit more aggressive with
the front wing to have a bit more load and help that, and that was a bit
better. As I said, I think the best feeling of the weekend was FP2, FP3.
However, in quali, it was still good, and it was still the best out of
everybody, and I think we've got a great car but it was just a bit of a
trickier session to put everything together, but I'm happy we did so for Q3.
Q: (Fred Ferret – L'Equipe) Question to Charles. Have you planned something
different for tonight compared to the other Saturdays where you get pole?
CL: No. No, no, no. Nothing different. At the end, we did the job on the
Saturday and then the only thing I can do is to try and focus on the
Sunday's race and do the best we can do as a team. But as I've said, I think
in the past there were some mistakes. We were in different situations. I
think the team has got a lot stronger since then. As I said, we'll approach
this race as all the others, and I'm confident that we'll do a great job.
Q: (Diletta Colombo – Auto Motor) A question for Charles. Confidence is key
here in Monaco. Did you think you could be a strong contender for pole
position as soon as you hit a track in free practice?
CL: In FP1, yes. But I prefer to have FP2, FP3 as positive as it was. But
when you have such a good FP2, FP3, and also FP1, you go into quali knowing
that you've got everything to lose. And if you don't take pole position,
then you look completely stupid. The pressure was still quite a lot on, but
we managed to pull it off, which was really nice. And obviously, as I
mentioned earlier, with the change of engine at the last minute, that wasn't
making me any more calm. So it was a bit of a tense quali going into
qualifying.
Q: (Carlo Platella – FormulaPassion.it) Another question for Charles. Last
year after qualifying, you said that the biggest negative difference between
SF23 and the 2022 car here in Monaco was bump riding. So what's the biggest
difference from last year to now?
CL: I think just the same, but in the good direction this time. And this
year, I think we've had a very good kerb riding compared to the others. I
think this is a strength. So yeah, kerb riding has been very good since the
beginning of the weekend. And I think that gave us a lot of consistency
around a track like here, especially in low-grip conditions like this was
the case in free practices. So that was positive.
Q: (Giles Richards – The Guardian) Just a question for Charles again. This
will be third time for you starting from pole here. Do you feel any added
pressure given the bad luck you've had from pole in the past and that this
might be finally the time you throw the monkey off your back?
CL: No, not at all. I think the tension, the peak of the tension actually of
the whole season, I would say, is in qualifying in Monaco. Then for the
race, it's not like you are more relaxed, but, well, yeah, actually you are
more relaxed just because the race, you've got to focus on the start, you've
got to focus around the pit stop, because obviously the laps around the pit
stop are extremely important, but... Yeah, the qualifying in Monaco is a big
part of the job. It is true that in the past we didn't have the success that
we wanted, but I don't want to think about that anymore. And I'm pretty sure
that it will be a good one this weekend.
Q: (Luke Smith – The Athletic) Oscar, question for you. Last couple of
races, the pace has clearly been there, but things maybe haven't quite gone
your way. How important would a big result be tomorrow, to kind of set the
season on the right track and show that the pace has always been there, just
needed a bit more luck?
OP: I don't think it changes the world. For me, I always try to not think
about the end results so much. I think for me, leaving a weekend satisfied
with what I've done in my control is a more important thing. I think the
last two weekends, especially Imola, have been very much the case. I think
I've put myself in a good position for a good result tomorrow. Yeah, you
know, I'm not really concerned with whatever the result is. I want to get
through the race, getting to the end of the weekend going, ‘I don't think I
could have done anything more than that’. So that would be more meaningful
to me. Of course, if you get a trophy at the end, especially the biggest
one, then it feels nice, but I think the momentum in the last few weekends
is definitely already helping with results that in the history books mean
not a lot. So, it would be nice, but if I can leave this weekend thinking
I've not been able to do anything more that would mean more to me.
Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Question for Charles. Charles, have you allowed
yourself to think how you would feel if you actually won here in Monaco? And
if you do win tomorrow, do you think that puts you back in the frame for the
championship, given Max is way back in sixth?
CL: I haven't thought about it too much. I had lots of other things to think
of until now. And my priority was to have the right qualifying position,
which now is done. However, now we have to focus on the race and I cannot
afford to start thinking about how it will feel if this happens. I think I
have more to gain in focusing on the process to get there and what can we do
in what we control until tomorrow's race to put everything together and to
give us the best chances in order to win the race tomorrow. The championship
is still long. I don't think one race is going to change everything for us.
So, yeah, we've got to stay calm. And I think it's too early to think about
that. I think Red Bull has still got the strongest car on the grid. However,
it's true that on a track like this that is so specific, they didn't have
the best car and they struggled a lot more. But that doesn't mean that it
will be the case until the end of the season. So, yeah, too early to say.
Q: (Matt Coch – Speedcafe) One to Charles and one to your brother, Oscar.
Going into Turn 1 tomorrow, how do you balance aggression versus
conservation, given that's realistically the only chance you've got to
either gain or lose a place short of strategy or something untoward
happening?
CL: I mean we are we are family. So starting on the front row both of us
will have a meeting with my mum tonight and I'm sure she will calm us down
and hopefully I can get through Turn 1 in the first position and Oscar in
the second place. But yeah, let's see. Obviously I think… [To Carlos] Do you
want me to adopt you as well? Don't be jealous, Carlos.
CS: You know, I need a haircut from your mom here. I need to find a new
hairdresser in Monaco.
CL: Whenever you want. Whenever you want. I think she has availability. And
she will find some for you, for sure. So, yeah, I think that we just need to
focus on ourselves. We can only control what we can do best, and that starts
with a good start. If we have a good start, I have little doubt that we'll
keep that position into Turn 1. And we've had good starts recently, so I'm
not too worried.
Q: Oscar, I think Matt was directing that question at you as well, just the
run to Turn 1 with your brother?
CL: I mean, it's a short run compared to everyone else. I don't know. I
might try and bribe your mum to let me go through, but I don't know. It's a
short run, obviously, and, you know, it is Monaco still, but the race isn't
all won and lost at Turn 1. There's still some things you can do. You can
put pressure on and make the right strategy calls, and it can still get you
through. So, yeah, it's not the be-all and end-all, but it would certainly
make life a bit easier.
Q: (Carlos Miguel – Diario Marca) A question for Sainz. Carlos, because we
know it's impossible to overtake in Monaco, do you have any chance to win
tomorrow?
CS: I think in a normal race it's impossible and then the focus will be,
like I said before, to see what we can do with the two cars to win the race
with Charles, that he's in the best possible position to do so. Then
obviously Monaco, you never know, all sorts of things can happen, but if I
win tomorrow it’s probably because something weird has happened with Charles
with strategy or with Safety Cars that I hope they don't in a way.
Obviously, we all want to win, but at the same time, I feel like Charles
deserves to win in Monaco after his unlucky run. He's been extremely strong
all week, all weekend, and here in the past, so, yeah, tomorrow is a day to
kind of wish that nothing happens and see if we can win with Charles.
Q: (Laurie Vermeersch – F1only.fr) The level of adrenaline is, we guess,
very high after such a quali. It's a question to all of you. Higher than
anywhere else. How do you manage this in order to be in good shape tomorrow,
to be in the good mindset? Are you even able to sleep after such a high
intensity qualification?
OP: I think I got the start of the question. For me, Monaco qualifying is
the most exciting session of the whole year. I think for us as drivers, I
think for the fans watching, Yeah, I think if there's one session you want
to watch for the whole year, it's the session we just had. So yeah, for me,
it gives you a feeling like nowhere else, especially when you put a good lap
together. It's very, very satisfying here. And yeah, I don't really have
more than that.
Q: Can you sleep?
OP: Will I sleep? I hope so. Yes, I mean, of course I will. I think the
adrenaline is always there on a race weekend. But yeah, I should be fine, I
hope.
CL: Yeah, I don't struggle too much to sleep, so I think I should be fine.
CS: Same. I'm a good sleeper. Seven, eight hours should be fine for me. If
there's one day maybe you don't sleep, it's Friday to Saturday after Friday
I had, but I managed to sleep, so all good for tomorrow.
Q: (Alex Kalinauckas – Autosport) Charles, you just said Monaco qualifying
is the peak of tension for the whole season. Every time the camera cut to
you between Q1, Q2 to Q3, when things were a little bit closer than they
might have looked in practice, you mentioned you look a bit stupid if you
dominate practice and then don't get pole position. Were you able to stay
calm in the car at that moment?
CL: Yeah, yeah. I mean, once you are in the car, actually, you feel so good.
Or at least I felt so good and everything goes away. It's more the two hours
in between FP3 to quali, that there you start to feel a little bit the
tension, that you know that you need to prepare everything, that you need to
anticipate track conditions, and all of this. But as soon as I put the
helmet and then I'm in the car, I'm completely fine, and I really don't feel
anything anymore. |
