Charles Leclerc is obsessed with victory. Coming second or third doesn’t matter to him. Also for this reason he suffered in front of the TV the other day while Ferrari was going to win at Le Mans, moreover with his friend Fuoco at the wheel. He spoke to me in a nice interview with Jacopo D’Orsi for La Stampa.
After six years, Charles Leclerc now has a second red skin. The news of Ferrari’s triumph at Le Mans arrives and he is among the first to compliment him via social media: “You are the best.” Then a thought for his friend Antonio Fuoco: «Very happy for you. Your dad will be very happy from up there, I love you.”
Charles, now it’s your turn in Formula 1: when will you win the World Championship?
«In the last 7-8 months no one has improved as much as us, but it also depends on the others. I believe it”.
Can 2024 still be the good year?
«We have a chance among the manufacturers. And among the riders I will push until the end.”
What would you be willing to give up to become world champion?
«Absolutely everything. Anything, because winning the World Championship and doing it with Ferrari is my life’s goal.”
How long are you willing to wait in Maranello?
«As much time as it takes. This is the team that made me dream as a child and believed in me when I was young, I will do everything to make it happen as soon as possible.”
How is your relationship with President John Elkann?
“We talk to each other often, he gives me a lot of advice, in a certain sense he saw me grow.”
Has he also reassured her in the past?
«Definitely but this concerns Ferrari in general. The best thing in the world is that there is passion here, you know that everyone gives 200%. Sometimes this energy needs to be managed and John has always helped us in this.”
You have often praised Frederic Vasseur: can the team principal be defined as your second dad?
«He welcomed me into F1 at Alfa Romeo and has known me since long before, a special bond unites us that goes beyond what happens on the track. We share everything. Even though on the track we have a professional relationship that is going very well. So according to dad I don’t know.”
When he told you that he would hire Lewis Hamilton for 2025, how did you feel about it?
«I see it as a super opportunity, for me and for the team, but also for our sport. Having a seven-time world champion in the team is a huge signal that we send outwards.”
Okay, but the first thought?
“Well it wasn’t a surprise, I had known for some time that there were discussions.”
Why is this an opportunity for you?
«It motivates me a lot to demonstrate what I am capable of and I will be able to learn from one of the best riders ever».
For Carlos Sainz, however, it was a blow.
«After many years I have a wonderful relationship with Carlos. From a personal point of view I was very sorry when I heard the news, on the other hand when you sign with a team there is an expiry date, you don’t know how far away but sooner or later it will arrive and you have to accept it.”
Vasseur said you and Lewis are on a “honeymoon”: is he your friend?
«There is great respect, as well as a very good relationship, but perhaps we don’t see each other enough to be friends. I am convinced that our relationship will become closer when he arrives at Ferrari, many worlds unite us. Music too.”
When you met in Melbourne did you also let him listen to your first mini-album, «Dreamers», created in collaboration with the French pianist Sofiane Pamart?
«Yes but he already knew my music, he wrote to me when the first things came out, we discuss it quite a bit».
And do they like them?
«Of course… At least that’s what he told me, but then I don’t know». (laughs)
Is it true that he taught himself to play the piano?
«Yes, especially during mCovid».
What is music for you?
«It means a lot, it’s the best way to disconnect. I am the luckiest person in the world to live this life in which we are always moving, but it can also be demanding and sometimes you have to take moments for yourself. The plan helps me.”
Let’s go back to F1: describe Hamilton and Max Verstappen with two adjectives.
«Both fast, obviously. For Lewis I would add calculator, you say?
Yes, on the track or off?
«On the track. In the way he moves, how he positions the car when he defends or attacks, you understand all the experience and thought behind it.”
And Max?
“Aggressive. He’s more like: if there’s space I’ll just go there.”
How would you describe yourself?
«I’m fast too. And intuitive: in certain moments I drive a lot with intuition, especially in qualifying, it’s something that characterizes me.”
Do you feel like the best?
«I go to sleep and wake up every morning with the fixed thought of winning, second and third place don’t interest me, but I don’t compare myself much to others. I did it more in the past but then I realized that the best thing is to focus on yourself and also work on the things that aren’t going well, I always do that.”
Do you support Italy or France at the European Championships?
“Good question…”.
It’s a foolproof way to understand if you now feel a little Italian.
“I’m not a big football fan, I mostly watch the finals, but now I’d say I’m a little more into Italy.”
Have you moved to Maranello?
“I don’t have a base yet, in the end I come here one day a week to work on the simulator and the next day I return to Monte Carlo.”
Where does he sleep, if we aren’t prying?
«There is a very close friend who welcomed me a long time ago, I usually stay with him. It’s convenient, five minutes from the company.”
Should you choose an Italian city to live in?
«I really like Milan, but as a Ferrari driver it would be a bit difficult to have a normal life. Another place that I love, very peaceful, is Tuscany in general.”
What do you like about us Italians?
“The semplicity. I think that’s why 90% of my friends are Italian.”
We will also have flaws.
“A lot of the people I know are quite messy but I beat them, so it doesn’t bother me too much.”
The Italian of the moment in sport is Jannik Sinner, your fellow citizen: do you know him?
«We often write to each other, he sent me several messages when I won in Monte Carlo, a moment I had been waiting for for years, and I obviously wrote to him for number 1. So far, however, we have only seen each other at a few awards ceremonies but we agree that at Soon we’ll go and play padel. Even if it won’t be a great day for me…”. (laughs)
You should also do a lap of the track somewhere.
“Maybe I could recover there.”
What did he write to you after the home triumph?
“Congratulations, he was happy for me.”
As a Monegasque, what effect do you have on so many sporting champions and others who take up residence in the Principality? Sinner is often criticized for tax reasons.
«I’m pleased, meeting so many top-level colleagues is super interesting. There is a lot to learn from other disciplines too.”
By the way: are you a little envious of those who compete in the Olympics?
«It would be fantastic if there was also motorsport, yes, but I wouldn’t want to be anyone else because for me it gives me great pride to represent such a small country like mine. In the end, there are 10,000 true Monegasques.”
And in any case Charles will be one of the Monegasques who will carry the Olympic Torch of Paris when it passes through Monaco on 18 June (tomorrow).
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