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Vasseur about Leclerc: That characteristic makes him a champion

Vasseur about Leclerc: "That characteristic makes him a champion"

07-01-2020 16:42
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Frederic Vasseur, Charles Leclerc's old boss at Alfa Romeo (then called Sauber), believes the man from Monaco has two traits that will make him a Formula 1 world champion in the future. He insists the Ferrari driver has an abundance of "self-confidence" and self-criticism" which will one day see him lift the greatest prize in the sport. 

Leclerc's first season at Ferrari was littered with mistakes in the early stages, but the 22-year-old performed well enough to finish ahead of teammate and four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel. These performances earnt him one big prize...a Ferrari contracted which will see him wear red until at least 2024. 

It looks like Ferrari believe they've found a gem and want to keep hold of his talents. Vasseur claims Leclerc has the ability, but more importantly the correct mentality. 

"I think it's one of the characteristics of Charles, but mainly of champions, [to be] very, very self-confident in the car and they can sometimes be able to do things coming from the moon because they have a huge self-confidence," Vasseur told Autosport

"And this self-confidence allows them, when they are out of the car, to have self-criticism, to blame themselves because they know perfectly that they have the potential. They are a champion, and they can say 'OK, I had a poor drive today.' And it's only a champion who is able to say something like this. On paper, they are better than the others, but he's able to blame himself - OK, forget the session, I had a poor drive. And it's good for the team because when it's not the case, they could bring you in the wrong direction."

In the immediate future, Leclerc will have to fight-off Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas, Vettel and Max Verstappen to become champion of the world. Something that would be easier if he had a Silver Arrow to work with. But the majority of Leclerc's career will come after the rule and regulation overhaul when things should be closer. And this is when that kind of mentality will be extra important.