Charles Leclerc believed some rivals broke the rules with their cool-down laps at the end of qualifying for the Montreal sprint race.
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After qualifying sixth for tomorrow’s opening sprint race at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Leclerc asked his race engineer Bryan Bozzi to report the matter to the stewards.
“Guys, what the fuck?” Leclerc said after completing his final timed lap. “This traffic, for fuck’s sake. Come on.”
He went on: “We should complain about the cool-down laps, they are for sure, for sure illegal. For tomorrow let’s focus on being alone on-track and not having these guys’ cool-down laps.”
Leclerc did not name specific drivers he thought had impeded him. During the closing phase of qualifying he ran with Oscar Piastri ahead and Andrea Kimi Antonelli behind, and had experienced some traffic earlier in the session when the track was busier.
The stewards have not opened any investigations into cool-down lap driving from the sprint qualifying session.
Leclerc also reported handling problems during the session, saying he struggled with the car’s brakes. “I haven’t been at all at ease with the car,” he explained. “I’m really, really struggling with the brakes on my side of the garage for some reason.
“We need to look into it and try to find something for tomorrow otherwise it’s going to be a very long weekend. On the brakes, I get into the corners hoping that I don’t end up going straight on, that’s the main issue at the moment.”
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