Charles Leclerc believes Sauber will find it “very difficult” to score points in Formula 1, but was nonetheless encouraged by his performance at the Australian Grand Prix.
Ferrari-backed reigning Formula 2 champion Leclerc has stepped up to Formula 1 this season with Sauber, which has scored just seven points across the past two years, en route to 10th in the standings on both occasions.
Sauber began the weekend eight-tenths adrift of the midfield during practice but made gains in qualifying, as Leclerc finished 18th, fractionally behind team-mate Marcus Ericsson, who was a tenth of a second away from Q2.
The Monegasque youngster lost ground off the line in the race but profited as rivals retired, before making his way past Lance Stroll to take 13th position.
Leclerc, though, says his maiden outing in the sport was a reminder of the restrictions he now faces, having previously competed in single-spec machinery in junior categories.
“I’m extremely happy about the race, not only because we crossed the chequered flag but I think because we maxed out our potential,” he said.
“The only frustrating thing I need to learn is that in F1 something you do everything right but [there are] things that are not in my hands – I just need to do the best job possible.
“We could not score any points obviously, it will be very difficult to score any points this year, but we should be happy about the race we did.”
Ericsson, meanwhile, retired early on due to a hydraulics issue.
“It was a shame as it felt like I had a strong weekend,” he said. “We had a difficult Friday but we worked so hard to turn the weekend around.
“We had a great start, took a couple of positions, and had lined up Stroll before the retirement.”
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