"Max's title this year was just a matter of time" - Last lap penalty ends Charles Leclerc's 2022 F1 championship hopes in Suzuka

Charles Leclerc saw his 2022 F1 Drivers' World championship hopes dashed for good at Suzuka after a late penalty demoted him to P3 at this year's Japanese GP.

The race, which was a shortened one due to the torrential rain in the Mie Prefecture, did not disappoint the local fans. Max Verstappen became the first driver since the legendary Ayrton Senna in 1991 to win the title at Suzuka with a Honda-powered car.

Their delight, however, came at the cost of Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari driver was embroiled in a battle with Red Bull's Sergio Perez for the majority of the race after the red flag at the start.

The Monegasque seemed to have decent pace on his intermediate tires after the restart but wasn't able to hold it for long. Inside 20 laps, Max Verstappen was able to build a nearly 25-second lead over Charles Leclerc, who had to focus on keeping Perez at bay.

It just so happened that on the last corner of the final racing lap before time elapsed, Leclerc ran wide and cut the chicane before emerging rather dangerously on track. While he did cross the line in P2 meters ahead of Perez, a retroactive penalty was handed out to the Ferrari man, sealing the title in Verstappen's favor in the process.

In his parc fermé interview with Johnny Herbert, Leclerc gave an honest account of his race, comparing it to last week's Singapore GP. He said:

"Well, from lap 5 onwards, to be honest, it was all downhill. Really struggling with the tires. A bit like the last race no? We are very strong in warming up the tires but then after three-four laps we just destroy them. A struggle this time.

The 24-year-old then went on to laud his title rival on winning the Drivers' World Championship, saying:

"Huge congratulations, of course, to Max [Verstappen] for his second world championship and we'll keep pushing until the end. Obviously frustrating today. The pace was not quite there after four laps but it is like this."

When asked if Ferrari's goal was now to try and get the best results possible in the four rounds that remain in 2022, Charles Leclerc said:

"Exactly. That's the goal no? I mean, I think Max's title this year was just a matter of time really. We knew it. We expected him to win the world title. Now, we need to use those last races in order to become a better and hopefully put in a bit more of a challenge next year."

---

Where do Charles Leclerc and Ferrari go from here?

The drivers' title is out of Charles Leclerc's grasp and it will seem like a bitter pill to swallow, considering the blistering start he had to the campaign.

The Monegasque led the standings up until round five in Barcelona before a myriad of issues derailed his charge.

Ferrari still have an outside chance at the 2022 F1 Constructors' World Championship. The smart money, however, will be on Red Bull to wrap it up when they go to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.

The Scuderia have been starved of a victory since Austria before the summer break. It seems unlikely that they will be able to get the better of Red Bull in the final American race of the season.