"There's a lot of pressure around a track like this on his young shoulders, so it's totally normal."; Leclerc crashed out in Q2 in Baku
Sunday 28 April 2019 13:24, UK
Charles Leclerc's F1 rivals have sympathised with the youngster following his "painful" session-ending Azerbaijan GP qualifying crash.
Leclerc looked to be favourite for pole in Baku before shunting into the Turn Eight barriers in Q2, and Mercedes went on to secure an unexpected front-row lock-out with Valtteri Bottas edging out Lewis Hamilton.
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A distraught Ferrari youngster fronted up to his mistake, claiming he had been "stupid" and that "for the next three or four hours I will be beating myself up".
But the top-three drivers in qualifying assured Leclerc that the error was "normal", with Hamilton impressed with how he handled himself post-race.
"I'd be the same," said Hamilton when asked about Leclerc's frustration. "That's how we're tuned as racing drivers when it's your mistake. We're tough on ourselves. It's painful.
"There's a lot of pressure around a track like this on his young shoulders, so it's totally normal. Years and years ago I didn't come out of my room for two or three days when I had some experience like that so I totally understand how he feels.
"It's cool that he's open about it because that means he can get it out and look forward to tomorrow."
Pole-sitter Bottas added: "Mistakes you do yourself that you could have avoided... they hurt the most. I understand how he feels."
The best Leclerc can hope for now is a ninth-placed start, and Ferrari have their backs against the wall despite dominating practice in Azerbaijan.
Sebastian Vettel finished third, three-tenths of a second slower than Bottas. and he claimed: "I think it's normal when you do a mistake that you're not happy about it.
"Being critical - I think is the reason is why he's here, why we're here. I don't think any one of us enjoys that part of our racing life, but every now and then it's part of it.
"The weekend isn't over yet, I think we have a good car and I'm sure we can recover as a team tomorrow."
Watch the Azerbaijan GP live on Sky Sports F1. Sky Sports is the home of live and exclusive F1. Find out more here to watch the 2019 season live
