Yet despite this, Ferrari still called in Leclerc to switch to hard tires...
The Ferrari strategy group's idea was simple. From practice, their data showed that the first ten laps on hard tires would be slightly slower than on medium tires, but after ten laps, the hard tires were consistently 0.2-0.4 seconds faster per lap than the mediums.
That would be Leclerc's counterattack moment!
It's safe to say, this is Ferrari—they didn't consider the temperature issue during the race phase.
Currently, the track not only has cold winds but also occasional light rain in some areas, making the track temperature lower than the data they got during practice sessions.
So, after switching to hard tires, Leclerc couldn't keep his position for even one lap and was immediately overtaken by the charging Verstappen behind him.
Although Verstappen, having just overtaken Leclerc, spun 360 degrees at Turn 4 on the track, allowing Leclerc to pass again.
