Ferrari chairman John Elkann and Frederic Vasseur

John Elkann with Fred Vasseur - Photo: Race Pictures

Racing passion meets papacy: Pope Leo gets a Ferrari steering wheel

11:36, 27 Sep

Updated: 11:52, 27 Sep

byOlly Darcy

Pope Leo was gifted something very special from Ferrari's John Elkann, with the executive chairman presenting him a steering wheel used by Charles Leclerc.

"This is to remind you of your passion for driving!"

- John Elkann to Pope Leo

Elkann visited the new pope in Vatican City, bringing along some impressive pieces of Ferrari memorabilia to mark the special visit.

After greeting each other and having photos together, the Ferrari chairman showed the pope the special item he had brought from the Scuderia.

The first thing the pope got his hands on was the steering wheel that had previously been used by Leclerc during a Grand Prix weekend, with the 70-year-old amazed by the high-tech piece of equipment.

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Papa Leone XIV ha ricevuto il 26 settembre in Vaticano John Elkann, presidente di Stellantis, accompagnato dalla moglie Lavinia Borromeo. Tra i doni consegnati al Pontefice: un volante di Formula 1 già utilizzato in gara e un modellino Ferrari.

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"This is a real steering wheel? From the rear car?" the pope exclaimed, before going on to test and click the gear-changing paddles.

"This is to remind you of your passion for driving and to drive. This is more for fun," Elkann then said as he presented the pope with the next item, a model Ferrari road car.

Charles Leclerc in action in Baku - Photo: Race Pictures

Ferrari slip in the constructors' standings

Ferrari's latest race weekend was not a positive one, with a P8 and P9 finish for Lewis Hamilton and Leclerc, respectively, all they could muster at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

As a result, they saw themselves drop down the constructors' standings, with a positive weekend for Mercedes allowing the German team to leapfrog the Scuderia.

Team orders were also a big talking point in Baku, as Hamilton did not let Leclerc back through at the end of the race, despite being told to do so, calling the mistake a "misjudgement".

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After the race, Leclerc then commented on the incident, saying, "There are rules that we know we've got to work with. And today, maybe those rules were not respected."

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