LeClerc Wins First Formula 1 Victory On The Weekend Of His Friend's Death

The first race of the second part of the Formula 1 season has proven eventful with LeClerc’s first victory of his career. It was also the first Ferrari Grand Prix win this year.

The win was dedicated to Antoine Hubert was died after a crash during Saturday’s Formula 2 feature race. LeClerc was in a league on his own, topping the practice sessions and the segments of qualifying on his way to third pole position.

On race day, LeClerc led away from P1, and even though he lost track position to Sebastian Vettel during the pit stops, Ferrari instructed Vettel to give him way.

He then spent the next laps fending off Lewis Hamilton and buying LeClerc additional time before the Mercedes team passed him.

Unable to finish the race using the same tires, Vettel pitted then he rejoined the race in 4th place behind Valtteri Bottas.

A frantic first corner resulted in damage to Max Verstappen who crashed while running to Raidillon on the first lap after the first turn contact with Kimi Raikkonen. Daniel Ricciardo was also caught up in the chaos of the first corner.

LeClerc led through the first corners ahead of his teammate, Vettel, Hamilton, and Bottas. The safety car was deployed after Verstappen crashed. Once the race got back on track, LeClerc gapped the rest of the field.

As the race wound down, LeClerc managed his lead even with Hamilton breathing down his neck lap by lap.

By the final lap, Hamilton was just outside the DRS range though LeClerc kept his car straight and wide to cross the finish.

Bottas completed the podium at third in front of Vettel and Alex Albon in his debut for Red Bull finished at fifth which is a career-best for the rookie.

Albon got the position from Sergio Perez from Racing Point with an ambitious move on the Kemmel Straight.

LeClerc was untroubled at the front as he displayed a pace that his rivals were not able to match. It also felt like the right result after the tragedy of his friend’s death.

At 21, the driver is not a stranger to the pain of the loss of a colleague. His godfather, Jules Bianchi, died in 2015 after injuries sustained during an accident at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.

LeClerc told media outlets it felt good but difficult to enjoy on a weekend like that. He termed it as a dream come true. Indeed it was as hopes within the Ferrari team had centered on Vettel because he was the more experienced racer, though LeClerc rose to the occasion.