The decisive scene
Lap 21 Leclerc stop
The main regret is that Leclerc was in race control territory early and still ended as a official result P8 after penalty. The Lap 21 stop may have been necessary, but the visible cost was severe: a drop to P11 on pit-out while Ferrari lacked enough pace to recover cleanly against Mercedes and McLaren. With Leclerc’s medium tyre not collapsing, Ferrari needed stronger proof that Lap 21 was the least-damaging track-position choice.
Featured decision read: MIXED
Ferrari's call
Ferrari stopped Leclerc on Lap 21 for hard tyres with a 23.386s pit time.
Why the answer stays bounded
Leclerc had already lost the lead group, and without exact rival gaps Ferrari may have needed to protect against Mercedes, McLaren, Verstappen, or Hamilton cycles.