New Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur could make securing the long-term future of Charles Leclerc at the team one of his early leading priorities.
After a stellar debut season in red in 2019, in which he beat the four-time world champion, Sebastian Vettel, Leclerc was rewarded with a five-year contract extension – the longest ever in Ferrari history.
Although he still has another two seasons to run on that deal, Vasseur is said to be keen to build his long-term project around Leclerc and thrash out terms on a further multi-year extension at the beginning of 2023.
Leclerc has been associated with Ferrari since being signed up as a member of the team’s academy on the eve of his triumphant 2016 campaign in the GP3 series.
His performances in his debut F1 season with Alfa Romeo Sauber would be enough to earn a promotion to the works Ferrari team for the following year, where Leclerc earned widespread plaudits for his blindingly quick speed, eccentric race craft and a generally seamless transition to racing at the front.
Last season’s wholesale rule changes enabled Ferrari to re-emerge as a competitive force after difficult 2020 and 2021 campaigns, as Leclerc scored three victories, plus a further eight podiums, on his way to finishing a career-best second place in the drivers’ standings.
But optimism is reserved that Ferrari can build upon their return to winning ways and mount a sustained championship challenge over the upcoming years, with Vasseur reportedly pinpointing Leclerc as the centrepiece figure of his plans to herald in a new era of success for the Italian stable, according to Motorsport.com in Italy.
The report says: “It will not be surprising if immediately after the start of the 2023 season one of the priorities on Frederic Vasseur’s agenda will be the renewal of Leclerc.
“In Maranello they can’t take risks, the key figures must be confirmed with the dual purpose of eliminating potential tensions that could arise and being able to plan for the future in the long term. And Leclerc, in this project, is one of the pillars.”
Ferrari looks to fend off the competition
It’s further regarded that such a renewal for a driver with potential championship-winning calibre mutually hinges on both the “financial aspect and the technical guarantees“.
While the former is unlikely to be much of an issue in the age of the budget cap, Ferrari putting together a compelling argument that convinces Leclerc of their capability to overhaul the recent dominant figureheads of Mercedes and Red Bull will be decisive for negotiations.
Avoiding the various shortcomings that crippled Leclerc’s 2022 title bid will be imperative to Ferrari ensuring their star driver doesn’t become disillusioned with the direction of the team.
Despite both maintaining that matters between them remained good to the end, Leclerc’s relationship with Binotto appeared to become increasingly strained at points last season as the Scuderia’s title charge fell apart.
With Leclerc entering the penultimate year of his contract and the possibility of other top teams sniffing around his services, 2023 will be a critical year for Ferrari in more ways than one.
The appointment of a senior figure whom Leclerc knows well, having worked with Vassuer in GP3 and then subsequently once more during his opening F1 season, is likely to have earned the Monegasque’s approval.
However, despite his undying passion for a team that he’s adored since childhood, Leclerc has insisted that the progress on track will act as the primary determining factor behind his decision.
While the rumours surrounding the team over the winter have been positive, a failure to build on their relatively competitive start to the newest cycle of technical regulations could result in Ferrari facing the disastrous proposition of losing their most prized asset.
