“I hope he has it soon”: Ex-Ferrari boss feels ‘great’ champion Charles Leclerc is ‘still missing something’
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Charles Leclerc (L) | Jean Todt (R)
Charles Leclerc started the season on top of the world, leading Ferrari to their first win and 1-2 in more than 2 years. But since Imola, things have rarely worked out for the Monegasque. Sometimes it’s his own mistake, or a reliability problem, or sometimes a questionable strategic decision by his team.
Things rarely ever come together for him, and now, even the car’s performance seems squarely second best. So even if the team keep it together, they just end up not having enough performance to compete with Red Bull. It’s surely not a good feeling for the team or for Leclerc either, as the expectations were sky high, and the car, for most of the season has been very competitive.
Now, being more than 100 points behind in both championships, Ferrari’s focus will likely shift to protecting P2, for which they are certainly under threat by Mercedes now. This is something no one was expecting to happen either, but it has, and it’s mostly Ferrari to blame. Of course, Leclerc has not been faultless, and ex-Ferrari boss Jean Todt thinks he’s not quite all quite there yet.
Also Read: How can Charles Leclerc stop Max Verstappen from being crowned the World Champion in Singapore?
Jean Todt did not elaborate on what was ‘missing’ in Charles Leclerc
In an interview with the Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, Jean Todt discussed all things Ferrari. Of course, he knows the team intimately. The Frenchman is one of the eminent figures in the history of Ferrari, and of Formula 1 as a whole. Before his FIA presidency, Todt worked with the Italians for 15 years, first as general manager, and then as CEO.
In his stint, Ferrari went through perhaps the most successful period in its entire history, winning 8 Constructor’s Championships. It’s understandable why people may seek advice from him, but Todt only defended Mattia Binotto: “Each era is different, I don’t want to give advice. It is easy to give advice. The only one I can give him is to resist.
Todt had some words for Charles Leclerc as well: “Charles is already a great champion. He still lacks something, I hope he has it soon.” but did not elaborate on what exactly is missing. Todt also commented on how Ferrari’s season: “At a certain point Ferrari had the best car in the championship.“
“Then they lost certain opportunities, I think of the strategy, of a Safety Car that entered at the wrong time, of reliability problems. Several episodes that had a cost.”
The Frenchman asked Ferrari to ‘reflect’, so that these things do not happen again. For this season, it’s already too late, but they must take lessons for the future. His only ‘advice’? Never take anything for granted, and then ‘there will be all the ingredients to be champions.’
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Aniket Tripathi
(1002 Articles Published)