LUSAIL, Qatar (AP) — Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr. say they've resolved a disagreement which led Leclerc to vent his frustrations in an expletive-filled outburst over the radio following last week's Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Leclerc was clearly upset with the Ferrari strategy after he was passed by Sainz in Las Vegas and finished fourth, one place behind his teammate.
Both drivers said Thursday they'd spoken to clear up the situation ahead of this week's Qatar Grand Prix and felt they could now focus on trying to win the constructors' title for Ferrari.
“Whatever happened in Vegas, we discussed about it and we’re all good, which is the most important thing," Leclerc said. “I have no doubts about that because we’ve always had a really good relationship with Carlos. We’ve had races where sometimes things don’t go exactly the way we want but the most important thing is that we discuss about it and we go forward.”
Heading into their second-to-last race weekend as teammates, Sainz said he and Leclerc remained friends, even if “we go through some misunderstandings that in the heat of the moment, we obviously are quite vocal about and we feel very frustrated about.”
Sainz said he'd remember his time with Leclerc and Ferrari with fondness after he moves to Williams for 2025 to partner Alex Albon.
“We also have a personal relationship. And as much as the professional one goes through ups and downs, the personal one, I can tell you it’s always been really, really good,” Sainz said.
"In these four years in Ferrari, I’ve enjoyed every single moment with him. Even the tough ones, as much as they’ve been tough, I’m pretty sure in 20 or 30 years I’ll laugh about them and look back being proud of what we put together."
Leclerc will be teaming up with Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari next year and said he expected to form a bond with the seven-time champion.
“It’s a different kind of relationship because I haven’t spent that much time with Lewis yet, but I have obviously so much respect for Lewis and what he has achieved, and we have had a very good relationship,” he said.
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco attends a news conference at the Lusail International Circuit in Lusail, Qatar, ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco attends a news conference at the Lusail International Circuit in Lusail, Qatar, ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz of Spain, left, and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc of Monaco walk through paddock at the Lusail International Circuit in Lusail, Qatar, ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday approved a bill that codifies economic sanctions, like those imposed by the United States, as crimes against humanity and allows the prosecution of anyone who expresses support for the measures.
The bill, approved by the unicameral National Assembly, implicitly targets leading opposition leaders, many of whom have supported economic sanctions as a means to pressure the government into negotiations. The measure bans supporters of economic sanctions from running for office and allows authorities to prosecute them in absentia and seize their property.
“The unilateral coercive measures and other restrictive or punitive measures adopted against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela constitute a crime against humanity, within the framework of a systematic and widespread attack against the civilian population,” the bill, as read during Thursday's session, states.
A conviction under the bill would carry a sentence of at least 25 years in prison.
The approval comes one day after the White House announced it had imposed sanctions on 21 individuals it accused of undermining Venezuela’s July presidential election. It also followed the decision by the U.S. House of Representatives last week to pass a bill that would block the federal government from contracting any company doing business with the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
The measure is the latest effort by Venezuela's ruling party to silence dissent after the July election, which Maduro and former diplomat Edmundo González both claim to have won.
Venezuela’s National Electoral Council, which is stacked with Maduro loyalists, declared Maduro the winner hours after polls closed on July 28. But unlike previous presidential elections, electoral authorities did not provide detailed vote counts.
Meanwhile, the main opposition coalition collected tally sheets from 80% of the nation’s electronic voting machines, posted them online and said the voting records showed González won the election with twice as many votes as Maduro.
Anti-government protests erupted nationwide the day after the election, drawing repression from state security forces, which arrested more than 2,200 people, including political leaders, lawyers, poll workers, election volunteers and protesters, both minors and adults.
González left Venezuela in September for exile in Spain after a warrant was issued for his arrest in connection with an investigation into the publishing of the vote tally sheets, while opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has been hiding for months at an undisclosed location.
Machado last year won the presidential primary organized by the main opposition coalition. But Maduro's government kept her off the July 28 ballot via an administrative decision that concluded she could not run for office because she allegedly sought the broad economic sanctions the U.S. imposed last decade in an effort to topple Maduro. The sanctions crippled Venezuela's crucial oil sector.
Machado’s hand-picked substitute was also barred from representing the Unitary Platform opposition coalition. That prompted the faction’s leadership to choose González as candidate.
Last week, Venezuela’s Attorney General’s Office announced a new investigation against Machado. Her comments in favor of the U.S. House bill, according to a statement from the prosecutor's office, “constitute the commission of crimes of treason against the country,” conspiracy with foreign countries and association.
Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City.
National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, center, holds a document of a bill approved by lawmakers that codifies economic sanctions as a crime against humanity and allows the prosecution of anyone who expresses support for the measures, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
