Leclerc Crash Gifts Verstappen Victory

When Charles Leclerc started at the front of the grid in the French Grand Prix, he was looking to make it back-to-back wins and increase his chances of winning the title. After multiple disappointments of late due to engine failures, the Monegasque finally looked ready to compete again. But, he crashed out in France, much to everyone’s disbelief, and it was Max Verstappen who took advantage.

In the eyes of many, Leclerc was already fighting to keep his championship hopes alive. So, there was disbelief when he lost control of his Ferrari at the Beausset right-hander. Verstappen was only two laps out of the pit lane but was on hand to take control of the race, with victory meaning the Dutchman has now won seven in twelve and has a sixty-three point lead over Leclerc, with only ten races left to go in the current season.

It also proved to be an excellent day for Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. Hamilton was making his 300th start in Formula One and finished in second place behind Verstappen. Hamilton’s team-mate George Russell fended off a serious challenge from Sergio Perez in the other Red Bull in the final laps to take third. Leclerc’s team-mate came in fifth but was bemused as he was in third with eleven laps to go but was called in to make his second pit stop after moving onto a podium position.

After the race, Verstappen said, “The car was quick today, of course, unlucky for Charles, I hope he is OK, but I just did my race and looked after the tyres.

“We still have a bit of work to do, over a single lap especially, so we just have to keep on working.”

Leclerc crashing out of the race was undoubtedly of his own doing, but it also means that questions about who the eventual winner would have been immediately become redundant. Leclerc was on pole, managed to hold off the Dutchman, and then looked to be growing in confidence as the race went on.

Red Bull became anxious and decided to make their move by bringing Verstappen in for his first pit stop on the sixteenth lap. This put the pressure on Ferrari and Leclerc, who would then have been mulling over when to make their first stop. However, two laps later, Leclerc’s disastrous error saw him crash out of the race. And while he attempted to reverse out, he knew the game was up.

For a season that at the beginning seemed to hold a lot of promise for Ferrari and Leclerc, they’ve very much been the masters of their own downfall. Multiple engine failures have cost Leclerc and the team dearly. And, even though the Monegasque has made a minor slip-up previously, this was off the scale in terms of how much it’s dented his title hopes. Verstappen is now unlikely to be caught.