Leclerc extends Ferrari stay with new contract

Charles Leclerc has signed a new contract with Ferrari to continue his long-term partnership with the team.

Ferrari brought the Monaco native through its driver academy and promoted him from Sauber into a Ferrari race seat in 2019, meaning he is now in his eighth season at Maranello. The announcement of the new deal comes ahead of Leclerc’s home race, with Ferrari not disclosing the full length of the agreement beyond saying he will stay for the coming seasons.

“I couldn’t be happier to continue this journey with Scuderia Ferrari HP,” Leclerc said. “It has always been so much more than just a team to me. It’s the team I’ve loved and dreamt of being part of since I was a child, and after all these years it has become a second family.

“Together we’ve shared incredible moments and some tougher ones, but I believe in this team more than ever, and I’m deeply grateful that we will keep pushing side by side toward our shared goal of bringing the world championship back to Maranello.

“Being a Ferrari driver is a dream, but it’s also a responsibility I never take for granted. I’ll continue to give absolutely everything I have to bring this team back to where it belongs, at the very top, for everyone in Maranello, and above all for the tifosi, whose passion is the heartbeat of this Scuderia.”

At 28 years old, Leclerc has made the second-highest number of starts for Ferrari with 155, second only to Michael Schumacher (180). Leclerc is also only second to Schumacher in terms of pole positions for the team with 27, and is ninth on its all-time winners list with eight.

Team principal Fred Vasseur says Leclerc fits the Ferrari ethos and that his value extends beyond his driving abilities.

“Charles has been part of the Ferrari family for many years now and this renewal feels like something very natural for us,” Vasseur said. “Over these seasons we have seen him grow to become not only one of the strongest drivers in Formula 1, but also a person who is completely at one with the team and everything Ferrari represents.

“We appreciate his talent, we love his determination and the way he approaches every day with the people in the Scuderia, both on and off the track. We know how much this project means to him and we are happy to continue working towards our shared goals.”