Leclerc owns up to costly French GP mistake and crash

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Charles Leclerc sought no excuses for the costly mistake that put him in the wall and out of the French Grand Prix while he was leading the race.

After an early battle with Max Verstappen during which he convincingly held his own at the front, Leclerc was in the process of consolidating his lead in the wake of the Red Bull driver's first pit stop.

But on lap 18, the Ferrari driver ran wide at the second right-hand Beausset corner and spun head-on into the tyre barrier.

While unscathed, the Monegasque delivered an agonizing "Nooooooooooo…" over the radio when asked by his team if he was okay, adding that he couldn't get off throttle, suggesting an issue had sealed his fate.

©Formula1

But upon his return to the paddock, facing the media, Leclerc admitted to a costly mistake.

"Obviously it’s extremely frustrating," he said. "I feel like I’m performing at probably the highest level of my career since the beginning of the season.

"But there’s no point of performing at a very high level if then I do those mistakes."

Read also: Verstappen beats Hamilton in France, Leclerc crashes out

With Verstappen's win delivering a 63-point advantage to the Dutchman in the championship over Leclerc, the Monegasque was left to count his direct faults since the start of the season.

"I think there are 32 points in overall – 25 today, I think it was likely that we were going to win this race because we were fast, and seven in Imola with my mistake," he said.

"So at the end of the year we will count back and if there are 32 points missing then I know it’s coming from me and I did not deserve to win the championship.

"But for the second half of the season I need to get on top of those things if I want to be a world champion."

Leclerc said that he initially tried to extract his car from the tyre barrier after his crash, but his efforts were unsuccessful.
"I couldn’t reverse which was a shame because then I saw the car and the car was actually not too damaged. We could still run," he said.

"But this is a detail. First of all, I need to not put cars in the wall and then they should work better."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.