(Singapore) “My final goal is to be world champion with Ferrari” before any other team, assured Charles Leclerc, at the dawn of the 15th round of a Formula 1 season well below hopes of the Monegasque and the Scuderia.
In an interview with AFP, the reigning Monegasque vice-champion also looked back on the beginnings of Frenchman Fréderic Vasseur, at the head of the Italian team since January.
QUESTION: At the start of last season, you fought for the titles against Red Bull. Today you are only 6th in the championship, Ferrari 3rd. How do you deal with this?
ANSWER: “So far, (the first part of the season) has been difficult […], but I am 200% motivated to get back to last year’s level with the car and fight for victories again , because that’s where Ferrari deserves to be […]. After the first race, we had to realize that we were not at the desired level. But there was a huge reaction from the team. We are aware that we have to make up for lost time […]. There is still a lot of work to do. It wasn’t easy to accept, but once accepted, we had to work to try to close the gap – especially with Red Bull.”
Q: Red Bull who, with 100% wins this season, are on another planet…
A: “They did an exceptional job. Max (Verstappen, championship leader) is very comfortable in the car. It is extremely fast, it makes very few errors, if at all. Red Bull made the best car too, they did a very good “job”, better than anyone else on the grid. So well done.”
Q: Do you still think you can win a race this season?
A: “Quite honestly and realistically, I think for this year it’s going to be very complicated. I think Las Vegas (21st round of the season held in November) can be one of the races where we are going to be quite competitive. But I don’t think we’ll be at Red Bull’s level. »
Q: And next year, will you be up to par?
A: “I really hope so. The changes that Fred (Frédéric Vasseur, Editor’s note) is making today (within the team, Editor’s note) will not be seen immediately next year. We may see it more in the long term, because the engineers take time to arrive. In the meantime, we already have very good engineers and everything is possible for next year. We are also going to start from a completely new base for this 2024 car. With the aim of fighting with Red Bull.”
Q: You are committed to Ferrari until 2024. If you are not crowned next year, will your title dream continue with the Scuderia, for whom you have driven since 2019?
A: “I always dreamed of being at Ferrari. I have always loved Ferrari, it has been my dream since I was little. The situation is not the one I would have wanted to be in today, but that doesn’t make me forget the fact that this is my dream “team” – and that my end goal is to being world champion with Ferrari. I am very happy at Ferrari and my long-term goal is to be world champion with this team.
Q: Even if the results are slow in coming?
A: “This project with Fred is a long-term project. I am completely behind him, he knows it. I have 200% confidence in Fred and I am convinced that the choices he makes today will be the right ones. It just takes time for these new people to settle in. Today’s teams are no longer the same as 30 or 40 years ago where we could make changes and it was felt straight away, but I am convinced that the changes are the right ones. I don’t necessarily have any doubts about the future of Ferrari and I’m sure that it’s just a matter of time before we return to the front. This time just needs to be kept as short as possible.”
Q: Have you had any advanced contact with other teams?
A: “No, no, not at all.”
