Will Charles Leclerc be a prophet in his country? The Principality and Monegasques dream of it. But no one would risk a prognosis. Not with Red Bulls in steamroller mode. Not with the burning memory of years past. Charles Leclerc in F1 in Monaco, it’s three retirements and a (very) frustrating 4th place in four participations.
Do not, however, talk to him regarding a curse. The Ferrari driver, author of two pole positions in 2021 and 2022, does not look in retrospect. “The objective is pole. We want to win here”, he hammers. And here more than elsewhere, “pushing the limits pays off”. Interview.
In what state of mind do you approach this GP following two last frustrating editions? Is there, deep down inside you, an apprehension that the curse will repeat itself?
I don’t believe in curses. You just have to reset, learn from past mistakes and try to do the best job possible on Saturday. Qualifying here in Monaco is very important and, on Sunday, everything has to be put in order. I don’t have leftovers from previous years, we have to stop talking regarding it. I’m focusing on this year and everything will be fine.
Your “pole positions-number of Grands Prix” ratio is quite good but you are struggling to achieve it. Is it only due to circumstances?
It is not due to that. With Ferrari, we have a real problem in racing. The pace is much worse there than in qualifying. We are working on it but we still haven’t found the solution. Last year, we were at Red Bull’s level in certain races, but not at the end of the season. This year, they took a huge leap forward. In qualifying we manage to be there, but in the race we are still far away…
To be better this Sunday, precisely, have any new features been made to the car?
We won’t have many and I think it’s the right choice. On a circuit like Monaco, atypical and different from the others, it is very difficult to understand exactly whether the improvements are going in the right direction. In Barcelona, on the other hand, we will have some new pieces.
Has the cancellation of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix changed anything in your preparation for Monaco?
Quite honestly, it didn’t change anything for us. Canceling this Grand Prix was the right thing to do. It is extremely sad what happened and several members of the team living in this region have been affected.
Weather-wise, are you hoping for rain or sun?
I wish for victory come rain or shine [rires], let’s do the best job possible. With the sun, we can make a good result.
Can pole position be enough to win Sunday once morest Red Bull? Are you ready to play the stopper for the entirety of the Grand Prix or will they make it through?
It’s very difficult to overtake here. If we get pole position – that’s the goal but it won’t be easy – we have every chance. Red Bull has the best car today and Aston Martin, too, is extremely fast. Mercedes is a bit more inconsistent and we don’t know if they’ll do well in qualifying or not.
You have to go back to your F1 debut with Sauber, in 2018, to find traces of such an unproductive start to the championship in terms of points. What does this start of the season inspire in you?
It’s not positive, that’s for sure. I’m not going to describe each race but in the first two, we lost big points, at least two podiums. In Jeddah [en Arabie Saoudite, N.D.L.R.], we start 2nd and take ten penalty places for the problem suffered in Bahrain. Fighting for 3rd and 4th places means a lot of lost points and it’s not fun. The season is still long, there are 22 races on the calendar without Imola, so there is still time to catch up. We have to get down to work and improve the car on Sunday. This is where we really have difficulty.
With the future improvements at Barcelona, what do you expect for this end of the season?
The objective is to catch Red Bull. In F1, there are no miracles. Given the gap between us in the race, it will be difficult to beat them this year, unless they make a mistake in the settings. The objective is above all for the car to be more consistent in all conditions. With new tyres, it’s very good, but as soon as the conditions change, you’re completely off your optimal window and you lose a lot of performance.
Is this gap with Red Bull pushing to overdrive?
It pushes you to surpass yourself because I’m not here to finish 2nd, 3rd or 4th. I spoke regarding it with Fred Vasseur this Wednesday. I don’t want to leave two tenths on the table and say to myself “I brought the car back, it’s magnificent, but we finish 5th every weekend”. I don’t want to have that approach. in Baku, I took risks and it paid off and we took pole (3rd in the race, 15 points). in Miami, it didn’t pay off. Saturday is one of my highlights. This is how I will make the difference.
You never regret anything?
There are mistakes that I regretted as a driver but it is useless to dwell on them. Above all, you have to grow and learn from your mistakes. I’ve always been very honest with myself. I know when I’m going too far. I also know that pushing the limits pays off.
An initial assessment of your collaboration with Frédéric Vasseur?
I’m super happy with it. There are no surprises, we have already known each other very well for years in the minor categories.
We get the feeling that your engineer is panicked when he talks to you in the race. Is it a figment of the mind?
He always wants to do well but no, he is not panicked. On the other hand, it is certain that there have been difficult situations to manage in the past. We have changed the way we made decisions a lot compared to last year, especially here in Monaco. It may be difficult to understand from the outside, but you wouldn’t imagine, at that time, that my engineer had 45 people talking on the radio at the same time. He has to shout a little louder to be heard. We have worked a lot on this point.
You recently had a rant on your social networks in the face of intrusive fans ringing your doorbell. Does notoriety sometimes weigh you down?
I don’t suffer from it. It requires more organization for my private life, to move around. It’s part of our sport. It’s positive because it shows that there is a lot of enthusiasm around F1 at the moment. I made this post because limits had been exceeded. I haven’t had any problems since.
What advice did you give, precisely, to your little brother Arthur, to manage the solicitations?
To be careful, to protect yourself as much as possible. There are a lot of solicitations from the media but also from friends and family. Everyone is in Monaco for the Grand Prix and they ask for passes, want to see us and eat with us. It can be difficult to manage.
And on the track?
To go step by step. It’s a complicated circuit, very technical. It can be frustrating when following ten laps you are very far from the best times. Much more than on a normal circuit.
Two Leclerc in the race the same weekend, a pride?
Of course. My father was a driver and always dreamed of seeing us together at the Grand Prix. It’s the first year both here and I hope we will have a very good result.
A certain excess has taken hold of F1, especially in the United States, with extravagant prices. Your opinion?
This is the problem with F1 in general. It is more and more expensive, both for the drivers to access it and for the fans to see a Grand Prix. I hope that efforts will be made to help fans with less means to access these kinds of events.
