Leclerc Keen On Staying With Ferrari: 'I Want To Finish The Mission'

Wednesday, 15 November 2023 at 15:00

Updated at Wednesday, 15 November 2023 at 19:21

Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver Charles Leclerc said he wants to stay with Ferrari and "finish the mission" of winning the World Championship title with the team.

Charles Leclerc is considered to be one of the greatest young talents in Formula One. In 2018, he joined Alfa Romeo Sauber, and it took only one season to get into one of the top teams - Scuderia Ferrari.

Leclerc showed great promise after joining Ferrari as he outperformed his teammate, four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel, on multiple occasions.

The Monegasque driver has achieved five wins and 28 podiums with the team during five years. However, he was not able to win a Championship. Asked if the pressure is starting to get to him, Leclerc told ESPN in a recent interview:

"I'm not someone that is getting pressure, I just enjoy what I do with a lot of passion and a lot of dedication in trying to do the best job possible and hopefully becoming a world champion as soon as possible."

His current contract with the team lasts until the end of 2024, and the time for negotiations concerning the next contract is coming. On whether he thought about changing teams, Leclerc said:

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"I don't really think to that because Ferrari is so special and I wouldn't change my position with anyone else on the grid."

Ferrari did not have the fastest car in 2023, but Leclerc says he would not change to other teams because he wants his Championship with Ferrari.

Do I want to win world championships? Of course, this is the same for everybody, but do I want to change my place with anyone? No, I don't."

After achieving his first two goals of becoming an F1 driver and winning an F1 race, Leclerc has been fully focused on becoming the World Champion: "I have always been dreaming of being a Formula One driver, and even more so with Ferrari."

"It's a bit of a family feeling now, it's been so many years I have been within the team, whether it is as an actual race driver for Ferrari or at the Ferrari Driver Academy in the years before."

The 26-year-old often shows incredible speed when he puts his Ferrari on the pole during Qualifications, but his car has been suffering from high tire degradation, making him slower during races.

As a consequence, Leclerc usually loses positions to cars with better tire efficiency. On the other hand, he does not give up: "It's been many years together and I want to finish the mission with a world championship."