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Charles Leclerc conceded that “there is still a long way to go” before Ferrari can once again consider itself a contender for the Formula 1 championship.
Ferrari suffered its worst season in 40 years last season, finishing sixth after falling prey to an underpowered powertrain and heavy drag.
The current campaign has been a much stronger performance for the Scuderia, although not a full return to form, with four podiums and the team battling McLaren to be ‘the best of the rest’ for third place in the standings. .
Following the Italian Grand Prix, Leclerc surpassed his points return of 2020, a fact he says reflects the progress the team has made.
“It’s different,” he explained. “From the first race I felt more confident with this car. The overall performance was better and we were also more consistent compared to last year so it’s good to see that.
“It shows that we are working in the right direction. There is still a long way to go until we reach our goals of fighting for the title again, but it has been a good step forward compared to last year and now we have to keep working in this direction.
The fight with McLaren looks set to end in the season finale in Abu Dhabi with a gap between the two teams of just 17.5 points with seven races remaining.
“They are having a very good season unfortunately but it’s good that we have such a fight,” continued Leclerc.
“We’ve been very, very close all season.
“At Monza they were very strong and we will try to catch up now. Obviously they’re very fast, very consistent too, so now it’s our job to try to maximize every weekend and hopefully we can get back to them at the end of the championship.
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