Charles Leclerc praised Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto’s handling of his crash during qualifying for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Leclerc’s crash during Q2, after he led all the previous four sessions, cost the team one of its best chances to win a race before the summer break. He said Binotto, who took over in charge of Ferrari at the beginning of the season, “really analysed the situation very well.”

“[In] Baku obviously after the qualifying he was disappointed,” said Leclerc. “But he behaves differently with all the persons.

“He knows I’m very, very hard on myself and he adapts to it. So that’s why maybe I think he could have been harsher, he wanted to be harsher, but he saw how much I put myself down and didn’t.

“The only thing he was trying to do is to put myself up again which was very nice. There have been a few examples during the season like also in Germany where he has been there to help me to become a better driver after a low moment.”

Binotto had some pointed words for Leclerc on the radio following his victory in Monza, when he told his driver he was “forgiven”, and in Singapore, where an unhappy Leclerc was told to “enjoy” his visit to the podium. Binotto later publicly rebuked Leclerc for saying things that “should not be said on the radio”.

However Leclerc insists he has a positive relationship with his team boss.

“As a person I think we’re getting along very very well,” he said. “[He’s] a very calm person which I think is needed in an environment like Formula 1 where you’re always excited, everything goes so quick. To have a person that you can count on that is calm is always important.

“As a boss he’s just very similar to the person he is and I think that’s important too. But he can also be harsh when he needs to be and I think that’s all you need once you are a boss.”

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2019 F1 season