Charles Leclerc took a commanding victory from pole position at the 2022 Formula 1 season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix and was on course for his second win of the year in Saudi Arabia, but had to settle for second after for Max Verstappen to overtake him in the final laps.
The Monegasque, however, continues to be the leader of the championship, ahead of his teammate, Carlos Sainz, thanks to the 12-point advantage he has, and is 20 away from the Dutchman, who defends the title this season.
At Ferrari they know that they have a driver with tremendous quality, for a reason they renewed him at the end of 2019 for five seasons, and the team boss, Mattia Binotto , when asked if Leclerc was driving like someone who can win the world championship, said, “I think he’s doing it.”
“It’s something I expected to also renew with him until 2024, because we know what he’s capable of,” said the Italian-Swiss. “I think he is showing that he can fight for the championship. Without a doubt, he has the talent, the ability, he is a very good driver and we are very happy with what he is doing in these two races.”
Self-critical Charles Leclerc acknowledged that he had totally changed with the new era of Formula 1 technical regulations, but added that he had found several areas in which to “unlock more performance”.
“I am quite happy with this start to the season, working well with the team, and the preparation for the first rounds has been very good, I feel good in general,” said the first Monegasque to lead the category in all of history.
“There is more to come, what makes me happy is not the performance, but that I know where I have to work and what I need to improve to achieve more,” the 24-year-old continued. “Whether or not it will be enough to win the world championship, I have no idea.”
“It’s still very early in the season, but let’s say it’s a very good start,” Leclerc said.
