Leclerc reported early on his out lap that the line looked dry and later said, “I think we should box for softs,” only to be told, "Verstappen stayed out.”
He then repeated his request for softs before adding, “Let me know if you want me to put a lap in,” after which the team made it clear that he should log a banker lap on the intermediates, which he then did before pitting.
Alex Albon was the only driver to start Q2 on slicks and put in a time that remained at the top of the timesheets when the session ended.
Asked by Autosport if he had switched to slicks too late, Leclerc said: "Well, this for sure.
“I mean, I called for slicks on the out lap, it was clearly for slicks. I think Alex did that and went earlier than everybody on the slicks. And that was clearly the right choice.
“There was no risk taken whatsoever. For some reason, the team decided otherwise. That's it. I think we are just making our life way too difficult. And in those situations, I had a clear opinion. And yeah, we decided to do something else. So I am frustrated.
“Having said that other drivers did the same strategy as us and went through Q3. But you are just relying on small details instead of an easy Q2 going through. When the track is dry, you need slick tyres. And I don't know what happened."
Source: Autosport