Charles Leclerc has admitted Red Bull performed on another level against Ferrari at Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix.
The 24-year-old Monaco Leclerc has dropped to third in the World Championship behind Verstappen and Red Bull teammate Sergio ‘Czech’ Perez after being penalized five seconds behind for speeding in the pitlane. .
He said that was the least of his worries, looking back at a race where Red Bull provided a masterclass and posted consistently fast lap times en route to a dominant one-two finish.
“Finally, it’s more frustrating to see that there was a pace difference between Red Bull and us. It’s something we have to work on,” he said.
“Looking at Red Bull, they are on another level and they have found this weekend to be a bit worrying for us.”
He added that his title hopes were slim, but he refused to give up hope.
“It definitely looks very difficult right now, but I can’t quite figure it out. “
Teammate Carlos Sainz finished third behind the two Red Bulls after starting from pole position.
“Unfortunately, it was harder than expected,” he said. “I had a good start. I had a good start after the safety car but I didn’t have the pace.”
“The tires were overheating a lot and they were sliding a lot.”
“Today Red Bull, Max and Czech were in their own leagues but unfortunately we weren’t able to put up a stronger fight and had to survive.
“We have to learn why we weren’t so competitive at this track.”
