Charles Leclerc: We have good race pace

      Three drivers worked behind the wheel of Ferrari during Friday’s practice sessions at the Austrian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton took part in both sessions, while Dino Beganovic replaced Charles Leclerc in the first one. For the young Swedish driver, this was his second experience of participating in Friday practice sessions this season (and in his career).

      Summing up the day, Ferrari noted that the car lacks speed on a flying lap, but its race pace is quite competitive.

      Charles Leclerc (5th): “Today I got behind the wheel in the second session. Although I felt fairly confident while driving, I still wasn’t completely comfortable in the car.

      As usual, we have good race pace, but we need to work on our qualifying performance so we can start higher up and fight for the top positions on Sunday.”

      Lewis Hamilton (10th): “I missed part of the first practice due to gearbox issues, which set me back a bit.

      The second session was smoother, but in terms of pace, we’re not where we want to be. We have work to do tonight – together with the team, we’ll keep searching for the right setup.”

      Dino Beganovic (18th): “I had a productive day, completing the program. I helped the team gather data that will be useful for the remainder of the weekend.

      Of course, I’m very happy that I got to drive a Formula 1 car again in the first practice, but what made it especially nice was having the Prancing Horse emblem on my overalls. I’m grateful to Ferrari and their Racing Academy for this opportunity.

      Now, all my attention is on Formula 2. I’ll try my best to achieve a good result this weekend.”