Leclerc satisfied after FP2: 'Much better than in the first free practice'

It's fair to say that Ferrari are back to their usual level in France. After two great performances on the street circuits of Monaco and Baku, Charles Leclerc is not expecting any more miracles in France.

It's all over with Leclerc's miraculous pole laps. That's what the Monegasque himself had said on the Thursday and after the first two free practice sessions held at Paul Ricard on Friday this also seems to be the truth as Ferrari have fallen behind Mercedes and Red Bull Racing.

No pole in France

"Now we are where we expected to be. We thought we would be battling with McLaren, Alpine and AlphaTauri and we should be," Leclerc is quoted by Motorsport-Magazin.com. Conspicuously absent from Leclerc's line-up is Aston Martin, who have also performed strongly in recent races, but probably, like Ferrari, performed stronger than normal on the street circuits.

Leclerc came in the second free practice more than half a second short of the fastest time of Max Verstappen. But Leclerc is not dissatisfied with his fifth place: "Yes, not bad. We still have some work to do, but it was a good turnaround after FP1. The car felt much better."