Charles Leclerc has warned Ferrari must anticipate the evolving wind conditions to stand a chance at remaining at the top in Formula 1’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Ferrari has introduced a much-anticipated upgrade package this weekend to its opening home round of the season as it bids to close the gap on champions Red Bull.
Leclerc capitalised on the Italian marque’s latest car developments to top the timesheets in the first practice hour before replicating that result in the second session.
The Monegasque disclosed the updates had worked as anticipated, but cautioned that the switch in wind conditions expected tomorrow will complicate proceedings.
“For now, everything went quite smoothly. The feeling with the car is good,” Leclerc said. “The upgrades on the car are working as expected, which also is a good step.
“It’s been a smooth day. So it’s great being at home. It’s always a special feeling for Ferrari being here and having so much support around the track, it means a lot to all of us.
“It will be great if the weekend continues in that direction. However tomorrow, the conditions will change massively.
“The wind will completely turn around, which will have a big effect on all the cars. There we have to be the best at anticipating those changes.”
Both Ferrari and Miami victors McLaren looked to have the edge over championship leaders Red Bull, with Max Verstappen expressing discontent with his RB20 car.
However, Leclerc has tempered expectations surrounding Ferrari’s prospects, admitting that securing track position will be vital on a circuit where overtaking is tough.
“We need to keep our feet on the ground because as I’ve said, it’s tomorrow going to be big changes with the track conditions, and track position here is absolutely everything so qualifying will be super important and it will be important for us to do the job in qualifying,” he added.
“So there is still a lot of work to do. We’ll give it all in order to have a great qualifying tomorrow.”
