Charles Leclerc has admitted he "went too far" while defending against Oscar Piastri during their controversial battle at the Belgian Grand Prix, conceding the incident was not how he wants to race.
The Ferrari driver and McLaren's Piastri made wheel-to-wheel contact at Les Combes on lap eight at Spa-Francorchamps as they fought over third place.
Although both drivers continued, Piastri's car sustained damage that McLaren estimated cost between two and three tenths of a second per lap for the remainder of the race.
Leclerc accepts Piastri's criticism
The FIA investigated the incident but opted against taking action, ruling that Leclerc had not deliberately forced Piastri off the circuit.
Ahead of this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring, however, the Monegasque admitted he had pushed the limits too far.
"I kind of agree with Oscar, I think," Leclerc told reporters in Budapest.
"At the end of the day, my view in the car is that I try to push things to the limit. With Oscar, it was a bit on the other side, so that's probably not the way I want to race all the time.
"It's also risky for me at the end of the day. You are always trying to leave the smallest place available. That was maybe a bit too far... Sketchy."
La Gazzetta Ferrari@GazzettaFerrari"To be a fast driver only on one car is not great and I don't think it exists so much either."
"So I think a fast driver is fast in any cars."
Piastri wanted FIA warning
Piastri questioned the stewards' decision after the race, insisting the incident deserved at least a black-and-white warning flag, even if it did not warrant a time penalty.
"From where I was at, I was on the white line and got squeezed," the Australian said.
"I think we were very lucky not to have a bigger crash because we touched wheels at the start of the braking zone.
"I'm not saying it needed to be a penalty necessarily, but at least a black-and-white flag or something like that.
"If we think that's fine, it creates the incentive that you can leave everyone the absolute bare minimum space and get away with it. That's not the nicest place to be."
The FIA stewards concluded that Piastri never had sufficient overlap to complete the overtake and that Leclerc had simply followed the normal racing line into Turn 5, resulting in the side-to-side contact.
Despite avoiding any punishment, Leclerc's admission suggests he believes the move crossed the line and is one he would rather not repeat.
