Charles Leclerc is preparing for his fifth Monaco Grand Prix. In an interview with La Gazette de Monaco, the Ferrari driver said he is not losing his motivation, is doing everything he can to return the team to the leading position and is ready to take risks to win at home.
Q: The start of the season is not ideal, given the two retirements and the seventh place in the individual ranking. How can you explain such results?
Charles Leclerc: It is true that the beginning of the season turned out to be difficult, and our position is explained by our results. History cannot be changed, but in the first three races we lost a lot of points. Little by little we try to win back. The season is long, so at such times you should not give up and stay motivated. Nothing has yet been decided in the calendar of 22 stages.
Q: Despite everything, you won pole position in Baku and climbed to the podium. Do these city circuit results bode well for Monaco?
Charles Leclerc: The track is difficult in Baku, as well as in Monaco. This year our car is pretty good in slow corners and I hope this weekend will be the same. In Baku I was happy with the car, although we lacked speed compared to Red Bull, but the qualifying results helped cover that up. Then the race pace brought us back to reality. And although the weekend in Baku turned out to be the most successful of the season so far, we still have a lot to do to return.
Q: In Monaco, the result largely depends on the driver…
Charles Leclerc: I hope! The circuit in Monaco is one of those circuits where the risk is justifiable. We are not in the same position as last year, when our car was very fast and stable on all tracks. This year Aston Martin took a big step forward and Red Bull remained on another planet, especially in racing. We all know how important qualifying is in Monaco and I think we have a chance on Saturday to try and start from the front row.
Q: The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix had to be canceled due to flooding. What do you think?
Charles Leclerc: It wasn’t easy for me, because the region is near Maranello, where the Ferrari headquarters is. I was driving when I heard the race was cancelled. Photos and videos allowed us to understand the extent of the damage from the floods. All this is very sad.
The team made an urgent donation. I also work on small projects to help the region recover from the disaster. I don’t want to go into details about what I do – you will find out all about it in the coming weeks.
Q: This weekend your brother Arthur is driving Formula 2 for the first time in Monaco. Do you have any advice for him?
Charles LeclercA: He’s already very excited. I’ve been in his position and I know how he feels. He should try to have fun, but I advised him to protect himself from external stress as much as possible, since it is very easy to overdo it in Monaco. He knows he has to stay focused all weekend.
My other advice to my brother is to move forward one step at a time. On the home track you want to demonstrate high speed as quickly as possible, but on city circuits it takes some getting used to. He needs to make the most of his training time to feel confident.
Q: It’s no secret that you know the team leader Frederic Vasseur well. Can you describe your relationship?
Charles Leclerc: It is true that we have known each other well for many years. He was always honest with me, which is quite rare in Formula 1, because as soon as you come to the championship you immediately have a lot of “friends”. Not many people can tell you honestly about your performances, and Frederik always shared his opinion openly. I really like this trait of his.
In addition, he has an excellent view of the overall picture, which is very important to get everyone on the same page in the team. We are on the same wavelength and that gives me confidence in the future.
Q: There have been a lot of rumors about your future in the press lately. What can you say about it?
Charles Leclerc: I’m not going to comment on rumors, but this is something new in my career. Previously, I was not the object of rumors. My move to Alfa Romeo was expected, and then everyone was surprised when my move to Ferrari was announced during the season. Since then, no one has doubted, because I have a multi-year contract that does not expire until the end of next year.
I love Ferrari and have always dreamed of driving for this team. Rumors don’t affect me in any way and I’m focused on working on the track because we haven’t reached the level where we should be yet.
Question: So it is not necessary to urgently solve the problem with the contract in the coming weeks?
Charles Leclerc: No, I don’t set myself deadlines. When the time is right, we will explore all options before we even start negotiating. I think Frederick should be the initiator, but there is still a year and a half before the contract expires, so it is only natural that there are no negotiations going on right now.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
