Charles Leclerc was critical of George Russell, saying the Mercedes driver is normally one to complain over the radio about other drivers.<\/p>\n
The two battled late on in the race with Russell blaming Leclerc for moving under braking, arguing that the Ferrari driver should receive a penalty.<\/p>\n
Charles Leclerc criticises George Russell radio complaints<\/p>\n
Russell was heard arguing that Leclerc deserved a penalty, even prompting race engineer\u00a0Marcus Dudley to tell the driver to \u201ckeep cool\u201d and even if Leclerc did ultimately get penalised, he was critical of Russell\u2019s approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew I was on the limit,\u201d Leclerc said. \u201cI don\u2019t have much [of an] opinion about it. I felt like I moved before braking and then I braked, obviously angling my car towards the apex, which is normally what I do.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I can imagine George being quite vocal on the radio, it\u2019s normally the case.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leclerc was ultimately handed a five-second time penalty which was applied post race, though it had no impact on the finishing order.<\/p>\n
\u201cCar 16 moved towards Car 63 on the main straight before braking and subsequently moved a second time, now under braking, nearly causing a collision with Car 63,\u201d the Stewards noted. \u201cThe Stewards consider both moves combined to constitute erratic driving.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Stewards took into account that Car 63 succeeded in overtaking Car 16 and that there was no contact and in these circumstances apply a less severe penalty than might have been applied in different circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked if he was frustrated about Russell\u2019s complaints, Leclerc said he would have been had a Safety Car been called.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know, especially on a race like this,\u201d he said. \u201cIf there was a Safety Car in the race and I would have taken a five-second penalty, I probably would have been a lot more frustrated.\u201d<\/p>\n
Russell meanwhile said Leclerc deserved his penalty and had to \u201csend it\u201d in order to get by,<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing down the straight at 330 and you sort of dive into the corner,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re right on the limit of your car\u2019s grip.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t just brake and turn to avoid somebody, because you\u2019re already at the limit of that grip.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I made my intentions really clear, dive into the inside and he moved after he had committed to braking, which is not allowed in the rules<\/p>\n
\u201cHe did it once, I was unhappy about it. Second time, I was like \u2018well, I\u2019m going to just send it down the inside now\u2019 and he did it again, and we made contact.<\/p>\n
More reaction from the race in Budapest<\/p>\n
Charles Leclerc backtracks on Ferrari radio rant as true cause of problems revealed<\/a><\/p>\n