Never give up on the save.
Formula 1 / Twitter
A wet F1 practice session, like the one drivers faced at Imola Friday, is usually a recipe for three or four spins. Or, in Charles Leclerc’s case, a save as close as you can get to a spin.
What a save by @Charles_Leclerc! 🤯#ImolaGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/XCa4Kc1TDK
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 22, 2022
Leclerc was getting back on the power after putting a wheel on the painted point between the curb and the track when his rears slipped out. Normally, that’s a quick spin and, at a track as fast and tight as Imola, a potential crash. Even a quick countersteering reaction is not enough when a car is rotating that quickly, in this case, getting so far sideways that Leclerc is actually past being perpendicular with the racing line. Well, it usually is not enough. Somehow, it works here.
Just by simply slowing the car and going through the save process, Leclerc is able to right the ship without ever actually stopping on track. Not only does he keep going, he does so without any damage from either the spin or cars behind him.
Normally, teams would sit out a session this wet to avoid the risk of crashes like this, but Imola is the first sprint qualifying race of the season and this was the day’s only practice session to test new components before the laps start to count. That makes Leclerc avoiding the wall all the more important, as it kept his team from having to re-build a car just a few hours before the first round of qualifying time trials. He led the day’s lone practice session by nearly a second, so his Ferrari team will be looking forward to those sessions.
Keyword: Watch Charles Leclerc Effortlessly Save an Over 90-Degree Slide