Charles Leclerc admits why ‘I cannot be happy’ despite positive change at Ferrari

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Charles Leclerc thinks the Monegasque has seen a positive change to his driving since joining Ferrari, but admits he ‘cannot be happy’ with one aspect even if it ‘still bites’.

The 27-year-old is fast approaching the close of his sixth season at the Scuderia after joining in 2019. Ferrari promoted Leclerc to their line-up beside Sebastian Vettel for only his second year on the Formula 1 grid. He debuted for Sauber on the back of winning GP3 and F2 titles.

Leclerc is also on course for one of his best seasons in F1 to date this term. Through the first 19 rounds of 2024, the Monte Carlo native has three wins to his name – matching his career-best from 2022. Leclerc won the United States Grand Prix, too, by leading a Ferrari one-two.

Charles Leclerc admits his impatience ‘still bits’ despite improving at Ferrari

This season could also see Leclerc record a personal-best tally of points with 275 thus far to trail only the 308 he scored in 2022 to finish second in the drivers’ championship. He sits in third place ahead of the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix, which marks round 20 of 24 this year.

Leclerc will register his 145th Grand Prix entry in Mexico City, where he also hopes to make the 143rd start in F1. It is some way shy of the 400 Grand Prix entries record that Fernando Alonso will further at the Mexico City GP. Leclerc also still feels he has room he can improve.

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While the product of the Ferrari Driver Academy thinks he has polished up being impatient since joining the Scuderia in 2019, Leclerc admits it ‘still bites’ as he refuses to be happy by losing even one-tenth of a second a lap. He is even happy to risk going ‘over the limit’ for it.

“I think my main weakness when I got to Ferrari was being very impatient and sometimes it still bites me,” Leclerc admitted during the official pre-event press conference this Thursday.

“I feel like I found the right balance because I cannot either be happy to be a tenth off and I will always do absolutely everything in order to get that tenth – even if that means that sometimes I go over the limit and crash. But this is probably where I’ve learned the most.

“It’s to try and find that balance. Yes, sometimes it will happen that I’ll go over the limits. But I know that over the course of the season, it pays more often to have that approach than to just be happy being off for a weekend.”

Charles Leclerc has finished all but one of the 19 Grands Prix so far in 2024

Leclerc’s impatience has bitten the Monegasque throughout his Formula 1 career and cost him further wins with Ferrari. The eight-time Grand Prix winner even crashed out of a lead at the 2022 French Grand Prix with one of the many individual errors that blight his record.

Ferrari even saw Leclerc crash on the formation lap for the 2023 Sao Paulo Grand Prix to fail to start the race in Brazil. He spun at Turn 4 whilst warming the 26-time pole winner’s tyres through Descida do Lago after his SF-23 developed what Ferrari deemed a hydraulics issue.

This season, however, has seen great improvements from Leclerc – who took the chequered flag at all but one of the 19 Grands Prix held yet. Ferrari retired his SF-24 from the Canadian Grand Prix as Leclerc had an engine issue that was costing six-tenths to 1.2 seconds a lap.