Ferrari on the front row: Vettel lacks confidence in the rear

Ferrari in the first row

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30.03.2019

S o things can change quickly. In Melbourne two Mercedes were on the front row. Two weeks later in Bahrain, the front row of the grid is shining in red. Ferrari retaliated for the Melbourne defeat. But the pole position did not go to Sebastian Vettel, but to the newcomer Charles Leclerc. The Monegasse took 0.294 seconds from his teammate and Lewis Hamilton 0.324 seconds. There were only four hundredths of a second between Vettel and Hamilton. “I could have driven Sebastian's time, but Charles's pole was out of reach for me,” admitted Hamilton.

Leclerc tried to stay calm. The first pole position is like an accolade. Vettel confirmed: 'It's been a while for me, but it's a special moment that you should enjoy.' Ferrari's super talent admitted: 'Inside, I'm currently experiencing a lot of emotions. But I gotta try to stay cool There are no points for pole position. ”The new man in the Ferrari was particularly pleased to have learned from his mistake in Melbourne:“ I was not satisfied with my Q3 lap. This time I decided to put all the fastest times in the sector in one lap, and I succeeded. ”

Vettel's first Q2 lap would have been enough

Sebastian Vettel didn't look for any excuses. “It was Charles's day. I just didn't have a good qualification. ”Vettel still didn't feel comfortable in his Ferrari. “The stern is too restless. That cost me too much time in the second sector and in the last corner. Charles had more confidence in my car than I did. ”Already in Q1, Vettel allowed himself a massive brake in turn 1 when trying to use used tires. In Q2, the same thing in the curve before the back straight. “The timing wasn't ideal. I was caught in the lap behind Ricciardo. ”

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Charles Leclerc is the second youngest pole setter in history.

Vettel had a lap of 1.29, 233 minutes submitted. In view of the tight time intervals, it seemed too risky to bet on getting through Q2 with this time. Although it would have been enough in the end. Vettel would have made it into the top ten final in seventh place. The penalty followed immediately: Vettel only had a fresh set of soft tires left for Q3. He couldn't even shoot himself on used rubber because both sets of tires had brake plates. With just one attempt he was losing to a Leclerc in a row. 'I already lost my rhythm in Q2,' waved Vettel off.

Who is laughing on Sunday?

In Bahrain, the Ferrari SF90 was reminiscent of the car that did the winter test drives has become a favorite. “The pole position is the proof and the reward that we have learned our lessons. The team put a tremendous amount of work into understanding the problems in Melbourne, 'Vettel praised his team.

Nevertheless, the four-time world champion was quite perplexed after the data analysis. Ferrrari wins its time on the competition on the straights. 'I can not explain it. In qualifying in Melbourne we drove at full power and were on a par with Mercedes. And now this jump. We have certainly not gained that much performance in the meantime. ”Team boss Mattia Binotto was also enthusiastic about that. “It may well be that Mercedes chose more downforce and that pays off in the race. If that were the case, we'd laugh today and Mercedes tomorrow. ”Leclerc reassured:“ We were close to Mercedes in our long runs on Friday. ”

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