Charles Leclerc acknowledges his performance needs improvement to surpass that of his teammate, Carlos Sainz.
Currently, the esteemed driver from Monaco finds himself in a particularly uncomfortable position, being overshadowed by his colleague. This comes even as Sainz, who triumphed in Melbourne, finds himself without a contract for 2025.
Max Verstappen refrains from questioning Ferrari's choice to pair Leclerc with the future teammate Lewis Hamilton, rather than Sainz.
"Carlos now has to make the right choice about where he wants to go," said Verstappen, the Red Bull champion, in an interview with Formule 1 magazine.
Regarding Ferrari's preference for Leclerc over Sainz, Verstappen shared, "That seems like a reasonable decision to me."
He further noted, "Charles has been working with the team for so long and has just signed a new contract."
However, Leclerc's immediate focus is to equalize with Sainz, who claimed victory in Australia while still recuperating from an urgent appendix operation.
Despite Ferrari showcasing a more formidable car in 2024, Leclerc openly states, "I would be lying if I said I was happy."
"Victories are important," he mentions in Corriere dello Sport, "but points at the end of each season are even more important."
Leclerc commends Sainz at Suzuka, saying, "Carlos is doing an extraordinary job." He adds, "Now it's my turn to react and win, maybe already this race. I'm putting everything into making it possible."
"In Formula 1 you tend to forget everything quickly - to concentrate on the last race," he observed. "But if I look at my last 8-9 races, I think I've driven at a very good level. Only on those occasions it wasn't possible to win."
"It's up to me to be ready when there is the possibility, and I wasn't ready either in Singapore in 2023 or in Australia two weeks ago. But I keep pushing."
For Leclerc, the silver lining is that he pilots the swiftest vehicle aside from a Red Bull.
"We have a stable and predictable machine," he asserts. "Then the updates will arrive and hopefully they will allow us to fight in a consistent manner."
