The Ferrari driver emerged as Mercedes’ next challenger from the second free practice session in Barcelona after a tough day of running, just 0.165 seconds off Lewis Hamilton’s FP2 pace.
The Monegasque was overtaken by new team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr. last time in Portugal, but battled back for sixth place in the race when Sainz slipped out of the points due to the heavy grain of the center tire.
Leclerc explained that a more structured way of building the pace pays off rather than going full blast from the start.
“I’ve changed my approach to Portimao a bit,” he said.
“I go a lot further step by step and drive a lot better. I’m in a better place just by car.
“Hopefully we can continue to build on this strong first day, as this will be particularly important in qualifying on this track.
“I think we know where we can improve. Now let’s see if we can do a good job of only getting better where we are fighting. “
Leclerc felt that an offensive stance in Portugal when determining the boundaries in each session resulted in his not understanding the strengths and weaknesses of his Ferrari package when it came to qualifying.
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF21
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
“After every weekend I try to analyze what I can do better and of course you realize even more what you are doing wrong when you have a very bad weekend like at Portimao, apart from the race,” he said.
“I knew what to do, but it’s always the easy part. You know where to improve, but then it’s pretty difficult to do it on the track and I’ve done pretty well here so I’m happy. “
The demands of the Barcelona circuit, with long, high-speed straight sections and a complex end sector, have been viewed by many as the litmus test of the overall performance of the 2021 vehicles.
Leclerc said the fact that Ferrari has looked so strong so far is extremely encouraging and shows the progress his team made over the winter after finishing sixth in the 2020 constructors’ championship.
“We struggled a lot last year and this year the car just feels a lot better,” he said. “That’s great.
“I think it’s especially good for the whole team at the factory that keep working when they finally see the numbers and see how much better we are compared to last year.
“It motivates everyone, so it feels good in the car and hopefully Saturday will be a good day.”
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