The F1 paddock is buzzing about the fierce rivalry between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, following their intense battles in the last two races. However, Charles Leclerc is now adding to the pressure, emerging as a serious title contender. The Monegasque driver has shown incredible form recently, securing three victories this season.

Now, he’s set to make life difficult for his rivals at the Brazilian GP, ready to challenge both Verstappen and Norris for the title. In recent races, Ferrari’s qualifying sessions have been unpredictable, but they’ve consistently managed strong race performances. The same happened during sprint qualifying in Brazil.

Charles Leclerc held a front-row spot first, but McLaren’s impressive pace led by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, pushed him to the second row. Monegasque ultimately secured a solid third-place finish in the sprint qualifying. He praised McLaren’s speed and admitted Ferrari needs to work hard to catch up, as they’re clearly behind McLaren this weekend.

I’m happy because we maximised the result for today. I think there couldn’t have been any room for improvement , McLaren is really very fast and we’re a bit further back for now this weekend . Charles Leclerc said, as reported by Formula1a.

unoThe sprint race will offer extra points that could either widen or narrow the 29-point gap between Ferrari and McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship. Ferrari is fully focused on bringing back the title to Maranello, which they haven’t won since 2008. Leclerc emphasized that it’s crucial for them to score as many points as possible to bring the glory home.

The Ferrari duo is excited and determined to make things difficult for the Woking-based squad in Saturday’s sprint race. It will be important to score a lot of points anyway. We will try everything to make things difficult for them in tomorrow’s Sprint race, for which the team’s objective will be to bring home as many points as possible.

Charles Leclerc statedRELATEDOscar Piastri delighted to take surprise Sprint pole from Lando Norris for Brazilian GPCharles Leclerc expresses optimism for the sprints despite McLaren’s strong paceDespite recognizing Ferrari’s lack of pace compared to McLaren, Charles Leclerc remains optimistic about his third-place finish in the sprint qualifying, with Carlos Sainz starting fifth. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc (via Planetf1)Both drivers are determined to give their all and make life difficult for the McLaren duo on track. However, they know it will be a tough challenge, given the impressive pace McLaren demonstrated today.

I don’t like to say that so early in the weekend, so we will give everything to test them. But given the pace they showed today, I think they were particularly strong. Charles Leclerc explainedThe 27-year-old is ready to push the limits, hoping to close the gap and compete fiercely against McLaren.

RELATEDOscar Piastri reveals McLaren’ ‘main objective’ after qualifying ahead of Lando Norris for Interlagos SprintHowever, Max Verstappen, just behind him, poses a threat as Leclerc emerges as a title contender ready to compete.