Carlos Sainz sat out FP1 and came back for a P6 result in FP2, while Charles Leclerc finished both of Friday’s practise sessions at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in P3. The racers believe Ferrari has opportunity for improvement.
After the first day of practise for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc felt that the opposition to Ferrari is “a step ahead” of them.
The Monegasque, who is currently competing with Sergio Perez for second place in the World Championship, came in third in both Friday’s time trials.
Carlos Sainz’s F1-75 was driven by Robert Shwartzman in FP1, and when the Spaniard came back to the track in FP2, he set the sixth-fastest time of the hour.
In the first practise, Mercedes had a 1-2 lead, with Max Verstappen setting the tone for Red Bull later on.
Leclerc assesses Ferrari’s difficulties
After Friday’s race, Leclerc stated that Ferrari had experienced challenges, but he also cautioned that their competitors appeared to have an advantage over them.
“Overall, our sessions were okay,” Leclerc said.
“We struggled a bit with the race pace due to tyre degradation, which was expected. Our qualifying pace was a little better, but our competitors seem to be a step ahead.
“We will use tomorrow’s practice to make further progress and give it our all for the last qualifying of the year.”
Sainz: There is still potential for improvement
Sainz expects that the team can make some progress before Saturday’s last qualifying session of the 2022 Formula One season.
“It was a very busy FP2 for me after missing the first session, so it was all about catching up and getting into the rhythm as soon as possible,” Sainz commented.
“The feeling on track wasn’t too bad but I know we’ve got plenty of margin to improve tomorrow. I’m looking forward to the last qualifying of the year.”
Despite Mercedes’ third-place result in the Constructors’ Championship and Ferrari’s continued second-place position, the margin between the two teams has narrowed to 19 points.
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Abu Dhabi GP, Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, F1, F1 2022, Formula 1, Grand Prix
