Former FIA president Jean Todt says Charles Leclerc is a ‘great champion’ but the Ferrari driver is ‘missing something’.
At the start of the 2022 season, Charles Leclerc looked like he was in contention for the title, winning two of the first three races.
Since then, however, Charles Leclerc has only picked up one victory, and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen now has a huge 116-point lead.
Ferrari have had reliability concerns at some races this year, but Charles Leclerc has also made mistakes, most notably in France where he retired from the lead after his own mistakes.
At the same time, Ferrari has implemented a number of questionable strategies this year and is now trying to retain second place in the constructors’ standings ahead of Mercedes.
“Charles is already a great champion.
Jean Todt, who was Ferrari F1 team principal before becoming FIA president, has called on the team to learn from the mistakes that have plagued the 2022 campaign.
“Ferrari had the best car in the championship at one point,” said Jean Todt.
“Then they missed certain opportunities. I think about the strategy, the safety car that came in at the wrong time, the reliability issues.
“Various episodes took their toll.
“Nothing should be left to chance. And if nothing is taken for granted, you have all the ingredients to become a champion.
Ferrari has been away from the title since 2008, when it won the Constructors’ Championship. The team’s last drivers’ championship remains Kimi Raikkonen, who won the title in his first year with the team in 2007.
Category: F1 / Charles Leclerc / Ferrari