Charles Leclerc felt it was a ‘good season’ for him despite all the mishaps and mistakes made by Scuderia Ferrari, but there was no real satisfaction in splitting the two Oracle Red Bull Racing drivers in the Drivers’ Championship.
The Monegasque driver started the 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship season with two wins in the opening three races, but he would only taste victory once more throughout the year in Austria as Max Verstappen began to dominate at the front of the field.
Retirements from the lead in Spain, Azerbaijan and France did not help, nor did the strategy errors that Ferrari made in Great Britain and Hungary, but he was able to end the year second in the standings, his best result so far of his career and ahead of the second Red Bull of Sergio Pérez.
Leclerc says the improvements shown by Ferrari in 2022 were promising, particularly on the back of difficult campaigns in 2020 and 2021, and he hopes 2023 will offer another step forward for the Maranello-based outfit.
“Not too much satisfaction, to be honest,” Leclerc is quoted as saying by Motorsport.com when asked about splitting the Red Bulls in 2022. “Looking back at the season, I think it’s been a good season, especially looking at 2020 and 2021 that have been two very difficult years for the team.
“It wasn’t a given that we would do such a step forward and finish second in the drivers’ championship and also second in the constructors’ championship. So for that I’m happy.
“But then obviously, looking a bit more into the season closely, there’s been the middle part of the season that has been very frustrating, where we didn’t really put everything together coming to Sunday. And that was that was frustrating
“So mixed feelings about this season. But second place is quite good. I just hope it is a step forward, and that for next year, we can do another step forward.”