The Ferrari driver became the surprising leader after a clash between Hamilton and British GP pole sitter Max Verstappen on the first lap and held his lead after the red flag and through the first stint of the race.
Leclerc maintained his lead for most of the race at Silverstone as Hamilton served his 10-second penalty for colliding with Verstappen, but was overtaken by the Mercedes driver and overtaken with two laps to go.
The Monegasque, who also struggled with engine mapping problems during the race, found his second place bittersweet, of course, as he was so close to a shock victory, but accepted that he could be proud of his podium and Ferrari’s performance at Silverstone .
“It’s difficult to enjoy 100%, but it was an incredible race. I didn’t give 100%, but 200%, I gave everything, but it just wasn’t enough on the last two laps,” said Leclerc.
“Congratulations to Lewis, he did an amazing job and it’s amazing to see so many fans in the stands. It was fun in the car, but the pace was just a little lacking towards the end.
“We definitely didn’t expect it. We expected to be quite competitive after qualifying, but not as competitive as we are now.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF21
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
“We fought for victory, that was unbelievable, especially in the middle class we were extremely fast and on the hard we lacked the pace a bit compared to the Mercedes – but overall it was much stronger than we are used to.”
It’s Ferrari’s first podium since Carlos Sainz Jr. finished second at the Monaco GP and Leclerc’s first podium since last year’s British GP, which, in his opinion, shows the progress of the Italian team after a difficult 2020 season due to a drop in performance.
“The team is doing incredibly well and I’m very proud of the team,” he said. “Of course it’s great to have this type of race – it makes everyone cheer up.
“A lot has been done to show that we are doing something right and that we are working in the right direction. So we have to go on like this.
“It won’t be a smooth journey until we get back to the top, but we’ll give it our all.”
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