Leclerc will 'go for it' but hard to beat the bulls in Baku

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Double poleman Charles Leclerc says he'll will pull out the stops and "go for it" in Baku in both today's Sprint event and in Sunday's Grand Prix. But can the Ferrari driver vanquish the bulls?

After topping the timesheets in Friday's qualifying session, Leclerc kept Ferrari ahead after leading Saturday's Sprint Shootout.

It was an eventful ending however for the Monegasque in SQ3, with his final effort concluding in the barrier which brough out the red flag and signaled the end of the session.

Fortunately, Leclerc's first flyer had already put him out of reach of his Red Bull pursuers, Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen.

Read also: Leclerc tops Sprint Shootout but ends up in the wall!

"With the Softs, it was a little bit tricky," admitted Leclerc after the frantic session. "You get into Q3 and you haven’t driven on the tyres since yesterday.

"It’s not a long time ago but the conditions are very different, so it was behaving much differently.

"The rear overheated on the second lap, I tried to push a bit more to gain a little bit of lap time as I was behind my first best lap time.

"I lost it in Turn 5, it doesn’t have any consequence on qualifying. I don’t know about Carlos [Sainz] behind me, it’s a shame if he was improving.

"Happy with the first lap and now we have to confirm that in the race."

Leclerc's pole positions in Baku much needed pair after the dismal start to his 2023 campaign suffered by the Scuderia driver.

Leclerc now has two chances to try and pull off a win. But success in Azerbaijan against a dominant Red Bull team remains a tall order according to the five-time Grand Prix winner.

"We will go for it," he said. "We need to also be realistic. Up until now, we have been on the back foot, in the races especially.

"The Red Bulls seem to be a step ahead. So we’ll see how it is, hopefully we’ll have a good surprise.

"I think we improved the car quite a bit but today we will have more of an answer in the race to see where we are compared to them.

"I will do everything for it, we are here for that. Ferrari needs to be on top and I will do absolutely everything to win."

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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.