Charles Leclerc: The Future of Ferrari..?

Ferrari have re-signed the 22-year old Monegasque Charles Leclerc until the end of the 2024 Formula 1 season for a reported $9 million. But what does this mean for the future of Ferrari now they have locked him down for the next five years?

Leclerc had a stellar 2019 season with 2 wins, 7 poles and 10 podiums in his first season with Ferrari, and out-scored his more experienced, four-times world champion team-mate Sebastian Vettel by 24 points in the course of the 21-race campaign.

The Monegasque driver impressed right from the word go and would have won the second race in Bahrain had an engine problem not materialised in the final stages of the race. That race was a mark in the sand, and despite inconsistencies until the French GP in June, he ruffled the feathers of team-mate Vettel that would last all-season long.

It was in qualifying where Leclerc truly had the measure on Vettel, outqualifying the German 12-9 in their head-to-head fight and was an average of 0.111 seconds quicker.

So it was quite obvious that Ferrari would be desperate to hang onto the Monegasque, and as an early Christmas present, he was awarded a contract extention until the end of 2024. It signifies another important step for him as he is no longer a Ferrari academy driver, having been awarded an increased pay package to reflec his increased status within the team.

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto said:

“With each passing race this year, our wish to extend our contract with Charles became ever more self-evident and the decision means he will now be with us for the next five seasons.

“We are very pleased that he will be with us for many years to come and I’m sure that together we will write many new pages in the history of the Prancing Horse.”

What does this mean for Vettel?

Despite Vettel’s superb profile within F1, Leclerc’s extension shows that the future of Ferrari is with the Monegasque and that the German will have to earn his place alongside him. That means consistency as Vettel suffered regular racing errors in 2019 and demonstrated his weekness in wheel-to-wheel combat, with incidents in Bahrain, Silverstone and especially Monza acting as focal points of failure in Vettel’s campaign.

So if the German fails to deliver for Ferrari in the way he has done so in the past two seasons, his journey with the Scuderia could end rather unharmonously after six painful seasons at Ferrari and would likely set his sites on pastures new as the end of his F1 career draws ever nearer.

This would be a sad end to a man who has given so much to F1 with thrilling championship success in 2010 and 2012 in particular after sensational fights with Fernando Alonso. But unlike the Spaniard, the German has been unable to maximize the potential of the machines that have rolled out of Mananello and is still to take the title fight down to the last two races in a Ferrari.

Now with Ferrari heavily investing in Leclerc, 2020 is Vettel’s most important season with the Italian squad as he needs to prove that he can stand the heat that the young, exuberant and talented 22-year old is putting him under.

If Vettel fails, Ferrari are unlikely to be short of options with six-times world champion Lewis Hamilton reportedly thinking about a potential switch to the Scuderia for 2021 to end his career. The Briton has had six titles in Mercedes-powered cars, but should Vettel be pushed aside, having seen his big rivals from this generation (in Alonso and Vettel) fail at Ferrari, that will give him extra motivation when considering moving to Maranello.

Alternatively, Ferrari could see this as an oppotunity to hone the team around Leclerc with safer options include Antonio Giovinazzi, Kimi Raikkonen as well as potentially Carlos Sainz Jr or even Daniel Ricciardo.

But whatever happens now, Leclerc’s place at Ferrari Formula 1 Team is secure for the long-haul, with Vettel in need of a year of consistent big performances to save his seat and salvage his reputation at Ferrari before his time in F1 draws to a close.