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Charles Leclerc reckons that the 2023 F1 Dutch GP was the turnaround for his season in 2023, even though he retired from the race. The Monegasque had a poor start to the year, with two DNFs in Bahrain and Australia. Though he bagged occasional podiums, he was nowhere near the top of the table where he once was in 2022.
Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, however, Charles Leclerc claimed that his fortunes turned around after the Dutch GP. Despite retiring from the race due to floor damage from multiple off-track trips, the Ferrari driver was able to fully experiment with the setup and find what suits him the best.
He also mentioned how his teammate Carlos Sainz was doing the same as well. Hence, on some race weekends, Leclerc was better, while on others, Sainz had the upper hand.
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“The turning point came at Zandvoort," he said. "We tried completely different things with the two cars and learned a lot from that. We also experimented a lot in the first part of the season. Some things helped, some didn’t. Sometimes Carlos [Sainz] was good, sometimes I was. Sometimes nothing worked at all.”
Charles Leclerc explained that it might look from the outside like Ferrari was completely lost, but in reality, they were trying out all the setups to find the sweet spot.
“That’s why it looked like we didn’t know what we were doing. But we learned from each of these steps. Zandvoort was more the moment when we secured the understanding we had gained up to that point with special tests,” he said.
"Pole positions are no longer a real highlight" - Charles Leclerc
Charles Leclerc is now not concerned about bagging a pole position but is more focused on winning races. In 2023, the Monegasque grabbed five poles but was unable to convert even a single one into a race win. Hence, the young F1 driver said that he is more keen on winning races, simply because he now has 23 pole positions to his name but has only won four races from the top spot.
“Normally it’s the victories. Of course, a pole position feels good, but I’ve already got 23 of them. And of course, the whole thing is clouded by the fact that I already know on Saturday that Sunday will be much more difficult. That’s why pole positions are no longer a real highlight," he told the aforementioned publication.
Charles Leclerc ended the 2023 season in fifth place with 206 points.
