Charles Leclerc described Sunday as a “great day” despite a largely quiet run to third place at the French Grand Prix.
The Monegasque was left to lead the charge for the Scuderia but was largely anonymous as he tracked the leading Mercedes.
A late Virtual Safety Car offered a moment of hope as he closed to within a second of Valtteri Bottas for a last lap attack but not a half-hearted look into the final corner acknowledged it was in vain.
“I gave it everything, I felt OK with the car but the Mercedes were too quick early on,” Leclerc explained in parc ferme.
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“The first run was quite OK and on the second run, it was about tyre management and towards the end, I was catching Valtteri.
“There was not enough laps for me to try something, but where we were on Friday, today is a great day for us. In the last two laps I was catching quite quickly.”
Sunday’s result means Leclerc scored back-to-back podiums for the first time in his career, now the focus will be stepping up from third to eventually the top step.