SUMMARY
- Anticipation brews as Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc join forces at Ferrari.
- Leclerc dismisses rivalry with Hamilton while aiming for teamwork.
The potential clash between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc at Ferrari has sparked anticipation among the Formula 1 community. The former has secured an incredible seven world championship titles while striving for his eighth record-breaking one. On the other hand, Leclerc earned a reputation within a few years of his debut whereby ranking among the top contenders in F1.
The duo has illustrated quite an amount of eagerness to shape the car according to their distinct driving styles. Recent developments revealed that Ferrari has signed the British sensation for the 2025 season, which was termed the ‘biggest transfer’ in F1 history. However, Prancing Horse’s decision to sign Hamilton for the 2025 season alongside Leclerc has raised eyebrows in the motorsport community.
Charles Leclerc dismisses Lewis Hamilton as competition at Ferrari
The Monegasque, previously committed to Ferrari beyond 2024, has yet to publicly address Hamilton’s arrival. The duo’s contrasting career stages and aspirations intensify speculation about their future dynamics within the team. With Hamilton nearing the twilight of his career, Leclerc has been emerging as a promising talent. Nonetheless, their partnership raises questions about championship contention.
#F1 | Charles Leclerc when asked whether he will be faster than Lewis Hamilton:
“It is still too early to say that. But it will definitely be very interesting for me to have such an incredible champion like Lewis next to me who drives the same car.”⁰⁰“And I hope that we can… pic.twitter.com/YoxAeainsW
— deni (@fiagirly) February 29, 2024
Regardless, the 26-year-old driver does not agree with this analogy. According to him, “It is still too early to say that. But it will definitely be very interesting for me to have such an incredible champion like Lewis next to me who drives the same car. And I hope that we can both bring the team forward to try to win the championship, which is the goal of all of us.”
Leclerc had previously stated, “Obviously, Lewis is an incredible driver, the most successful in history, and with a lot of experience as well which he will bring to the team…” to the media. While the Ferrari driver harbors ambitions of clinching the title with Ferrari, Hamilton’s arrival adds a new layer of competition.
Future Ferrari teammates show support at Bahrain GP
Lewis Hamilton will be driving under the Mercedes banner for the very last time in 2024. As the new season has kicked off, onlookers are eager to witness the chemistry or bitter-sweet rivalry between the two. As Leclerc prepares to compete alongside Hamilton, questions arise regarding his championship prospects. Nonetheless, there is also an added pressure to perform while driving alongside a 7x champion.
“This guy will have alot more race wins coming in future.” – Hamilton on Leclerc after the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix. #AustrianGP. pic.twitter.com/iy8Kp5Sc7e
— Aadoo #FreePalestine🇵🇸 (@Aadozo) July 10, 2022
The dynamic nature of their relationship first came to light during the Bahrain Grand Prix of 2019. The Ferrari driver’s aspirations were gutted by an engine issue, allowing Hamilton to seize the win. However, Hamilton did not let Leclerc get discouraged by this incident.
He said, “I had to go and see Charles because he did such a great job. I’m sure it was a devastating result for him because he’d done the job to win. We were lucky. This guy has a lot of race wins coming in the future.” This very incident proved the sense of brotherhood the duo had developed given the fact that Leclerc was primarily a mere rookie at that time.