Charles Leclerc eyes Hungary win to bury France disappointment

Charles Leclerc says that he has put the disappointment of the French Grand Prix behind him already as he bids to bounce back in Hungary.

The Ferrari driver put a massive dent in his championship challenge last week as he binned his car at turn 11 of the Paul Ricard circuit, and he now sits 63 points off of Max Verstappen in the Drivers’ standings.

Indeed, it’s hard to see anyone catching Max at this stage, though there is still plenty of time for that to happen, and Leclerc says he believes in the championship still even if the French GP was undeniably a setback for him.

Speaking to the gathered press here in Budapest, Leclerc first reflected on the mistake and said that he has moved on:

“It’s just I pushed a bit too much on that lap and paid the price for it. Now, having said that, that’s it, it’s the past, I need to move on and I’ll focus one hundred percent on each race to try to do the best possible thing. The best possible reaction is to win this weekend and that’s exactly what I will try to do.”

The Ferrari man was also asked about whether he felt he was ‘ready’ for a title challenge and he replied in confident mood:

“I do feel I’m ready.

“If I look [at] the first part of the season especially, I think [this] has been my strongest season ever in Formula 1.

“I think in the race I did another step-up, which is good in terms of tyre management. So mistakes like last weekend still show that I’ve got some way to go but I’m getting there and I know my worth.

“Then of course the moments like last Sunday, everybody puts you down and this is not easy, but that’s fine as [it’s] part of the job. I just need to focus on myself, grow from that and show everybody what I’m worth.”