Charles Leclerc gives frank assessment of two crucial errors in Max Verstappen title fight

Charles Leclerc has opened up on his season-defining mistakes at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and the French Grand Prix after he was beaten to this year's Drivers' Championship title by Max Verstappen. The latter clinched the honours by winning the Japanese Grand Prix earlier this month after an initially shaky start to the campaign in which Leclerc managed to establish himself as an early title contender.

The Ferrari man led Verstappen by 34 points after the first three rounds but quickly saw his Drivers' Championship hopes go up in flames, with a combination of poor strategy calls and individual mistakes derailing his title charge. Leclerc has since admitted that he was at fault for his glaring errors at Imola and Paul-Ricard but also pointed to the deficiencies within the team as another area in need of improvement.

"I don't think when I did the mistakes, I had to compensate for anything," Leclerc told RacingNews365. "It was just obviously motivation to do in [Ferrari's home race at] Imola, and then in France, yes, I did the mistake, but I think that could have happened anywhere in the season.

"For me, it's not this. I try to push the limits all the time, and then there was this big mistake in France and smaller one in Imola. I cannot change it. I feel like it is being talked [about] much more than it should be.

"Obviously, looking at the points gap, it is huge and there has been consecutive points losses and at one point, everything we were doing was under the spotlights. As a team, we just need to be better executing Sundays and this is what we should work [towards]."

Leclerc, who currently sits third in the Drivers' Championship standings behind Verstappen and Sergio Perez, went on to insist that he is largely content with how the season has unfolded as it has given him plenty of valuable experience to put to good use in future title fights.

"Honestly, I'm very happy with this season," he added. "Of course we're always going to talk about my mistakes in Imola and in France but in over 23 races, we have too many now, there's always going to be a mistake at one point or another and especially [when you are] pushing for the limit.

"So yes, I was probably too greedy in France when there was no need to be greedy at that moment of the race. Maybe also in Imola when the best I could [have done] was just staying in my position and I thought about doing better.

"From a driver's point of view, it has given me many more things that probably you don't see from the outside. As a driver, you always try to work on the small details, not weaknesses, but every time you a race, you learn from it.

"You try to bring it forward and be a better driver. There's not much I would have changed personally at the beginning of the season."

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