Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 2024

Leclerc confident Bahrain brake problem won’t recur in Jeddah

Formula 1

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Charles Leclerc is confident the brake problem he managed the Bahrain Grand Prix will not strike again in Jeddah.

He struggled with uneven brake temperatures from the early laps of last week’s season opener, a problem later confirmed by his Ferrari team.

While Leclerc managed the problem to finish in fourth place behind team mate Carlos Sainz Jnr, he appeared agitated over team radio throughout the race, even describing the problem as “dangerous” in one instance.

As this weekend’s venue, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, features fewer heavy braking zones than Bahrain, drivers have more opportunities to their cool brakes while running on track this weekend. Leclerc says he does not expect the problem to recur in Saudi Arabia.

“It was just an issue that we’ve never had before,” said Leclerc. “That was obviously very costly in terms of time, especially in the first half of the race, where it was extremely difficult to drive. But no, I don’t expect it to happen again this weekend.”

Last week’s season-opener came a week after the sole pre-season test at the same Bahrain circuit. Leclerc says he did not experience any braking problems during his time in the car during testing.

“There are always fine-tunings that you have to do, which we did,” he said. “But no, we didn’t have any issues like I’ve had on the race.”

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Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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4 comments on “Leclerc confident Bahrain brake problem won’t recur in Jeddah”

  1. Michael (@freelittlebirds)
    6th March 2024, 20:21

    Don’t worry Charles – there is plenty a-more that can a-go wrong at Scuderia Ferrari…

    1. No need for ethnic jabs. Ferrari is 2nd in the WCC, and has been a near constant finisher in the top 3 for decades. Their record is very strong, and every year there are 7 or 8 teams that do worse.

      1. Michael (@freelittlebirds)
        7th March 2024, 7:40

        You made that sound like an achievement. The flipside, of course, is no championship in 15+ years or the foreseeable future.

        Since when is an Italian accent an ethnic jab?

  2. His “brake problem” name was Carlos.
    He could not finish ahead of him (not even with help and by help I mean pit stop).

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