Leclerc "disappointed" but hails Verstappen battle claiming "every race should be like this"
F1 News
Leclerc "disappointed" but hails Verstappen battle claiming "every race should be like this"
Charles Leclerc appeared exhilarated with his gripping battle with Max Verstappen in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and claimed: "every race should be like this".
After inheriting the lead from Sergio Perez during an early safety car period, Leclerc appeared comfortable at the front as he maintained a one-and-a-half second margin to Verstappen.
The battle came to life, however, in the closing 10 laps as the gap closed and the pair engaged in a thrilling fight to the finish as they passed and repassed each other with the use of DRS.
"It wasn't enough today, but my God, I really enjoyed that race," said Leclerc.
"It was hard racing but fair, and every race should be like this.
"It was fun, I am of course disappointed, I wanted to win today. We had two very different configurations with Max, and Checo and the Ferraris."
Leclerc on Verstappen: The respect has always been there
After crossing the line at the end of the race, Leclerc praised Verstappen for his part in the battle.
"We were quite quick in the corners and quite slow in the straights because we put more downforce, so it was extremely difficult for me to cover Max in the straight, but he did a great job and it was a fun race," explained Leclerc.
"The respect has always been there, especially when you finish a race like this. We are on a street track, we've been pushing like I've rarely pushed before, to the absolute limit, and we took risks at the end, so of course there is respect.
"But I'm still a bit disappointed."
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F1 Standings
Drivers
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Nyck De Vries
- Liam Lawson
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2023
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Australia 2023
- Grand Prix of China 2023
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2023
- Miami Grand Prix 2023
- Qatar Airways Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell'emilia Romagna 2023
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2023
- AWS Gran Premio de España 2023
- Grand Prix du Canada 2023
- Grand Prix of Austria 2023
- Aramco Grand Prix of Great Britain 2023
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2023
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2023
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Italy 2023
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2023
- Grand Prix of Japan 2023
- Qatar Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of the United States 2023
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2023
- Rolex Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2023
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2023
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