The Austrian Grand Prix was a very frustrating event for many drivers on the grid but it was Mercedes star George Russell who ended up on the top step of the podium.
The racing at the front of the pack is so much closer now that eight drivers go into each Grand Prix with a realistic chance of winning.
Max Verstappen and Lando Norris were the two most likely winners at the Red Bull Ring, but they got too close for comfort in the closing stages and both drivers had to limp home to the pit lane with punctures after contact at turn three.
That incident ended Norris’s race, while Verstappen had to settle for fifth place.
David Coulthard was speaking on Channel 4 after the Austrian Grand Prix about one driver who had an even tougher weekend.
Austria hosted the third Sprint Race of the season, giving drivers two opportunities to score points.
Russell, Carlos Sainz and Oscar Piastri were the main benefactors after standing on the podium during Sunday’s Grand Prix.
However, after recently giving up second place in the Drivers’ Championship to Lando Norris, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc had another tough weekend.
Coulthard has lamented how Leclerc performed across the event, with a mixture of bad luck and small mistakes impacting his chances of scoring big points.
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David Coulthard on ‘frustrated’ Charles Leclerc after Austrian Grand Prix
Reflecting on how the Monegasque driver performed across the race weekend, Coulthard said: “No, no, this is not good for Ferrari. This is definitely not good for Charles [Leclerc].
“You can tell he’s getting frustrated as well and yeah, I expected more.”
Leclerc was in the top three during the only practice session in Austria before suffering a disaster in Sprint Qualifying.
With every driver leaving it until the last second to set their only time during SQ3, Leclerc suffered a failure in the pit lane and failed to set a time.
He raced back to 7, overtaking Sergio Perez in the process, but could only qualify 6 for the main Grand Prix.
Leclerc was then squeezed by Piastri and Perez heading into turn one, and while the Australian got away without any damage, the other two drivers weren’t so lucky.
Perez had a huge hole ripped into his sidepod that impacted his performance and saw him finish behind Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas.
The Monegasque driver was even more unlucky, being forced to pit for a new front wing and he could only recover to 11 in the race, missing out on points in the process.
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Charles Leclerc dragged into battle for second place with Max Verstappen hurtling towards fourth F1 title
Coulthard wasn’t alone in thinking that Leclerc would be getting frustrated after the Austrian Grand Prix.
Marc Priestley admitted that he expected a lot more from Leclerc and the Monegasque driver will likely mimic those thoughts.
Ferrari looked like Red Bull’s closest rival for the first few races of the season, but have arguably been leapfrogged by McLaren and Mercedes.
They brought an important upgrade package to Barcelona but it hasn’t had the intended impact yet.
There’s a chance that could change at Silverstone as they begin to better understand the new parts and Leclerc will be desperate to overtake Lando Norris in the Drivers’ Championship again, with six drivers within 45 points of each other behind Verstappen.
The post ‘Definitely not good’: David Coulthard left frustrated by 150-point driver he ‘expected more’ from in Austria appeared first on F1 Oversteer.
