Charles Leclerc was extremely keen to attempt a one-stop strategy during the Bahrain Grand Prix and even revealed details of Ferrari’s strategy analysis to one of his rivals.
Pierre Gasly told his race engineer John Howard and the listening Alpine team the information he said Leclerc shared with him before the start of the race.
After returning to the cockpit of his car on the grid before the race Gasly came on his radio and related details of a conversation between the pair from the pre-race drivers’ parade. “I spoke with Leclerc in the parade and they think the one-stop is 1.5 seconds slower than the two-stop, only, so they might try that,” he said.
Leclerc’s eagerness to try a one-stop strategy became clear shortly before the race began, as Ferrari’s drivers were the only ones among the top 10 starters who opted for the harder medium tyre compound instead of softs. However soon after the race began, as Gasly took up sixth place immediately behind Leclerc, the Alpine driver began to doubt whether the Ferrari driver’s plan would pay off.
On lap six Gasly told Howard: “Leclerc is struggling a lot with the medium.” Despite this Gasly started to fall back, out of DRS range behind the Ferrari as his soft tyres began to fade.
At the start of the race, Leclerc observed how few of his rivals had joined him starting on the mediums. George Russell and Lando Norris both started on softs and immediately passed the Ferrari on the run to turn one. Leclerc then had his mirrors full of Gasly’s car for half-a-dozen laps:
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| Lap: 1/57 LEC: 1’41.332 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Ah, Russell is on softs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And last car on the grid | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.7 behind. Norris 0.7 ahead. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 2/57 LEC: 1’38.048 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.7 behind, Norris 1.0, DRS enabled | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.9 behind with DRS. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.8 with DRS. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 3/57 LEC: 1’38.463 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Diff mid minus one. Gasly 0.8 with DRS behind. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 4/57 LEC: 1’38.273 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.7 behind, you can push more turn six. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Multifunction GX position four, when you can, Gasly 0.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 5/57 LEC: 1’38.427 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly, 0.8 behind. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Brake balance minus one. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And we need to save more in turn 12. Leave the mode. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 6/57 LEC: 1’38.784 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.9 with DRS. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | [Unclear] at front. I’m locking so much. Have we got brake inconsistencies? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Front temps are okay, but they’re high. Brake balance minus one. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Yeah, that’s why. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And [state of charge] 6. I would do [lift-and-coast] for tyres. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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As the soft-shod drivers began to pit, Ferrari realised their pace on the mediums and the expected performance of the hard tyres meant a single stop strategy would not be competitive. They preferred plan ‘B’ – two stints on medium compounds followed by one on hard – while Leclerc lobbied for plan ‘D’ – presumably a single stop to take hard tyres, which they never attempted.
When race engineer Bryan Bozzi called Leclerc in for a second set of mediums, the driver knew the team was abandoning the one-stop plan, which would end his chances of another Monza 2024-style victory. He made one last effort to persuade them to switch to a single stop strategy, but though he had told Gasly their simulations indicated it was only one-and-a-half seconds slower than pitting twice, Bozzi informed him Ferrari’s updated model now indicated it would cost five seconds more:
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| Lap: 8/57 LEC: 1’39.133 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And Norris five-second penalty ahead. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 9/57 LEC: 1’39.164 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | So Piastri 38.6, we are plan B, plan B. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | [Unclear]. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Repeat, Plan B for Bravo. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Plan delta to keep in mind. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 11/57 LEC: 1’39.185 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Norris on medium, Max on hard. And Norris served the five-second penalty. Switch position red. We have completed 11 laps. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 13/57 LEC: 1’38.721 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Tyre phase update please. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 14/57 LEC: 1’38.870 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Give me lap times of the guys that stopped. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | So Norris 38.0. Verstappen 37.2, first timed lap. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 15/57 LEC: 1’38.856 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | At the moment we are still on plan B for bravo, plan B for bravo. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | I think delta, copy. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lap: 17/57 LEC: 1’41.560 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And people behind lapping in 38, so more or less a second faster than us. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | And box this lap for mediums. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Ah, delta, please consider it. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | So it’s still five seconds slower from our point of view. And box, Charles, box. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | If I put myself into traffic it’s going to be shit with the brake. Box. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Flap update. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Leclerc | Okay. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
After making his final pit stop, Leclerc came out behind Gasly, and quickly passed him:
| Lap: 18/57 LEC: 1’57.817 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | We will be close to Gasly, only Gasly. Gasly seven-lap used medium ahead. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Gasly 0.4 ahead. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bozzi | Leclerc passes Gasly entering turn 11 Well done, Charles. Now some clean air. |
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At the end of the race, Gasly’s race engineer informed him that no one had used Leclerc’s preferred strategy:
| Chequered flag | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Howard | So everyone did a two-stop race, no one made a one-stop work. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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