Charles Leclerc, Ferrari Formula 1 driver, trust Lando Norris abilities and claims that it’s “just a matter of time” before he aces F1 victory.
He felt for the devastated Norris, who lost his chance to win at Russian Grand Prix.
Norris secured his maiden F1 pole during Saturday’s qualifying session. He started the race with hopes of winning his first victory at Sochi Autodrom. Unfortunately, late rain hampered his dreams and led to Lewis Hamilton’s 100th victory.
During the late rain, Norris opted to work with slack tyres to win the race. But the decision backfired and he had to pit during the last laps making way for Hamilton’s victory.
Distressed Norris expressed his feelings to the media after the race. But this is not a unique case where a young driver failed to secure the win. There are other cases reported, which were met with the similar fate as of Norris.
Read More: Norris can get the job done in F1
Leclerc failed to win at Bahrain Grand Prix in 2019 caused by an engine reliability issue. It slowed his pace and had to settle for third. George Russel and Alex Albon also saw their chances of victory slipping away.
Leclerc recalled his failure to win and acknowledge how difficult it was for him to absorb it. He thinks that Norris might burden himself with the decision of not pitting earlier.
“Obviously I can imagine what he is feeling,” Leclerc said.
“Probably he’s part of the decision process in those type of situations, and he might feel very, very guilty.
“But he is an amazing driver. I think he has shown it very often this season. He has had a very strong season, and I am sure he will learn from it.
“It’s just a matter of time before his first win, so yeah, I don’t think he should feel so down after the race he has done.”
Russell’s also had the opportunity to win a race last year at Sakhir Grand Prix. He failed to win the grand prix because of a puncture and ambiguous strategy.
“It’s every driver’s worst nightmare leading a race and the rain starts coming down, so I feel really bad for him,” Russell said.
“I’ve been there last year. I know how it feels. He’ll have plenty more victories to come.”
