Charles Leclerc says that he is more focused on exploring himself at the given opportunity on Ferrari Formula 1 team. He will be focusing more on driving rather than people’s expectations.
Leclerc, Sauber’s young talent, proved himself worthy of being traded by Ferrari. He scored 27 points while finishing sixth in his fourth race.
Ferrari trained the 21-year-old Monégasque racing driver and he won Formula 2 Championship in 2017. It led him to Formula 1 series with Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 team.
“I always wanted to go there as soon as possible,” said Leclerc.
“The pressure is not something I’m suffering from. I don’t think this will be an issue next year.
“Obviously already this year there was quite a bit of expectations on me doing well, and again next year it’s more or less the same thing.
“So, I’m just trying to focus on my job, and trying to extract all these expectations out of my mind, and to really 100% focus on what I do behind the wheel.”
Leclerc has been handed over a great opportunity to flourish while he will be fighting against four times world champion Sebastian Vettel at Ferrari. While, Esteban Ocon, his karting rival, thinks that he will be challenging not just Vettel but five times world champion Lewis Hamilton for crown in the next season.
Leclerc said: “For sure it’s a huge privilege to hear that, but I think it’s extremely important for me to keep the feet on the ground in this position.
“I believe it’s quite easy, especially at my age, to try and become a bit crazy about all of this.
“So I try not to think about it too much, try not to listen to the people that are telling good about me, and then try just to focus and improve myself.”
Leclerc is being swapped against Kimi Raikkonen, who won world title in 2007.
Maurizio Arrivabene, Ferrari team principal, also insisted that there is no pressure on the young talent and both drivers would do great alongside
“Charles has known him since 2016, when he signed his first contact, and we saw that he was a boy with great talents, as he later confirmed this season,” Arrivabene said.
“Next year his goal will be to gain experience. This is the most important aspect: avoiding mounting his head, and learning from Sebastian.
“He will have to absorb the tricks of the trade, like a sponge, from an experienced driver like Sebastian.”
