Ferrari simulations show Leclerc was set for Baku win

Ferrari’s Inaki Rueda says the Scuderia’s own simulations show Charles Leclerc was set for a comfortable win in Azerbaijan.

Leclerc was all set to claim the win in Baku had his power unit not let go, according to Ferrari’s sporting and strategy director Rueda.

Leclerc was leading the Azerbaijan Grand Prix ahead of both Red Bull drivers after each had made a pit-stop, having dived into the pits on lap nine under the Virtual Safety Car. With one-stop strategies being the order of the day in Baku, Leclerc thus lost far less time in the pits compared to the Bulls, who stopped after running a normal-length stint on the medium tyres.

Mick Schumacher’s engineer Gary Gannon runs us through a race weekend

Torquing Point: Red Bull dominate and Ferrari implode in Baku

Torquing Point: F1 finally returns to Montreal

Torquing Point: Are Ferrari harming their Charles Leclerc relationship?

Torquing Point: Another 'little victory’ for Mercedes

Pierre Gasly earns 8/10 on Torquing Point's driver ratings

Ferrari woes continue with double DNF

What Mick Schumacher was first like on an F1 grid

That gave Leclerc a comfortable lead, but he appeared set to have to fend off pursuing Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez who would have had fresher tyres to get to the chequered flag. That all became academic on lap 20 when Leclerc’s power unit failed, giving Red Bull a comfortable 1-2.

Fans were robbed of the opportunity to see whether Ferrari’s strategic gamble would have paid off against the Red Bulls, but Rueda explained everything had looked set for a Leclerc victory.

A tough break for Leclerc as his Baku hopes go up in smoke #AzerbaijanGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/LEYq3hVA8f

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 12, 2022

“Charles’ race was different. He was fighting for