Motorsport
It was a nightmare! Leclerc names the key factors that made the Qatar Grand Prix unbearable
The Qatar Grand Prix will remain in the memory of fans, teams, drivers and indeed everyone who has been involved with F1 for a very long time. During the race, the conditions at the Lusail International Circuit were unbearable. And it is on this subject that Charles Leclerc, like other drivers, has spoken out.
The Qatar Grand Prix will remain in the memory of fans, teams, drivers and indeed everyone who has been involved with F1 for a very long time. During the race, the conditions at the Lusail International Circuit were unbearable. And it is on this subject that Charles Leclerc, like other drivers, has spoken out. The Ferrari driver explained what all went wrong during the race and why the race was so difficult for everyone.
It was indeed an exceptional race. It is absolutely certain that the Qatar Grand Prix will always be remembered by everyone involved in F1. But not in a good way.
The whole race weekend was affected by track limits. The saga of this issue, it must be said, is never-ending and it alone is spoiling Formula One racing. But there was much more wrong in Qatar.
The FIA, in conjunction with Pirelli, confirmed before the race that for safety reasons, drivers would only be allowed to complete 18 laps on one set of tyres.
This is because the F1 tyre supplier did not have its product in such a state that teams could be allowed to run a standard grand prix. Individual sets of tyres, depending on how worn they were by individual drivers, then had a set maximum number of laps that drivers could complete on them.
This was due to the asphalt laid down, which was very harsh on the Pirelli tyres. Well, combined with the pyramid kerbs, the tyre devastation was taken care of.
When you take into account the enormous heat that prevailed in Qatar, it was truly hell for the drivers. And it was a hell of a ride. We have already written about the harsh conditions in a previous article, and the drivers simply had their work cut out for them to finish the race.
Charles Leclerc, who finished the Qatar Grand Prix in fifth place, talked about all this in his post-race interview. According to him, the combination of all these factors made the Qatar race unbearable.
Track limits, high pace and unbearable heat
“I think it was the hardest race of any Formula One driver’s career. And I don’t believe anyone who says it wasn’t. If we find ourselves in the same situation next year, we (all the drivers) will have to discuss it amongst ourselves,” Leclerc said.
The Ferrari driver mentioned as the most important fact that all the drivers had to make three pit stops because of that exceptional FIA rule. If one of the drivers missed the 18-lap limit for one set of tyres, he would be disqualified from the race.
For the driver, this meant no tyre management at high speeds. Instead, they had to drive at a high pace throughout the Qatar Grand Prix, virtually one qualifying lap after another. And as for the track conditions themselves?
“It’s not even about the physical preparation, it’s just that the dehydration is at such a level at that point that you can see much worse, your heart rate is skyrocketing and it’s very hard to control all of that.
You’re very dehydrated. You can’t even drink, because the water turns into tea or whatever, because you’re (in the car) over 60 degrees. It’s extremely difficult to hydrate yourself and you can’t see as well with the g-force,” Leclerc said bluntly.
“Also, in the case of track limits, we’re talking about centimetres at 280 km/h. Even in qualifying, when we’re still fresh, it’s hard to respect them, but at the end of the race it’s a nightmare,” he concluded.
Source: F1 TV, Twitter/X, Canal+ Sport
