Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur admitted Charles Leclerc was fortunate to finish the Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix after a suspected chassis issue ruined his chances of converting pole position into victory.
Leclerc, who started from pole for the first time this season, ultimately finished fourth. After pitting on Lap 41 for fresh tyres, his Ferrari suddenly lost pace, preventing him from chasing down race winner Lando Norris. Instead, Leclerc was overtaken by Oscar Piastri and George Russell, who went on to complete the podium.
The Monegasque revealed post-race that a chassis problem had caused the dramatic drop in performance. Vasseur later confirmed the team would investigate whether a part of the chassis had broken during the race.
“Well, I must say that the situation was quite strange,” Vasseur told reporters. “We were in control for the first 40 laps, the first stint was very strong, the second was a bit more difficult but still manageable. The last stint was a disaster—the balance was not there and, honestly, we don’t know exactly what happened yet.
“At one stage I thought we would never finish the race. To bring the car home in P4 and score points was lucky in this situation. But it’s frustrating because we took our first pole position of the season, the first two stints went well, and then we completely lost the pace in the final run.”
