Is Charles Leclerc looking to leave Ferrari? Formula 1 star addresses rumors of being fed up with the brand 

Charles Leclerc is clearing the air about rumors that he may be done with Ferrari.

The Monegasque Formula 1 star, 27, has been with the team since 2019. Just Jared has reported that he is signed on to stay with them through 2029, which also makes it the longest contract in the team's history.

Following a rocky start to this year's season, despite being second in the constructors' championship, Charles Leclerc admitted to being disappointed with the team's form. Ferrari has managed three grand prix podiums this year, due to Lewis Hamilton's victory in China.

As rumors that Charles Leclerc may be looking to end his contract with Ferrari continued to intensify, he spoke to reporters ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix on Thursday, June 12.

“I’m very surprised. I mean, I have no idea from where it’s coming from,” he said, via Motorsport. “So, I’ll rather just ignore it. But I’ve never said anything of this in the last few races. If anything, I keep saying how much I love the team and how much I want to bring back Ferrari to the top. I was just surprised. We have a vision that we share, us three – Fred [Vasseur, team principal], Lewis [Hamilton] and myself, in order to try and get back to winning. And we’ve been working to put that all together. And so, yeah, this is for sure our plan. And I think we should stick to it.”

Charles Leclerc dispels rumors he may be leaving Ferrari before expressing his disappointment: Read more

Charles Leclerc elucidated on his distaste for Ferrari's current position and its lack of a current title challenge, though he attributed this to McLaren having kicked off the year in better form than others. Nonetheless, he thinks that his team needed to "find ourselves" in order to do better.

"I think none of us are satisfied of how it's going at the moment. That's clear. We came into the season thinking that we had chances to challenge McLaren and Red Bull in order to win the championship. That has not been the case so far. However, it's fair also to say that I don't think many people understood, apart from McLaren, like... they've done a huge step forward compared to last year. A lot more than anybody else. I think McLaren is doing an outstanding job. We are absolutely not happy in the situation we are in at the moment. However, I feel like we just need to find ourselves as well, just like Mercedes, just like Red Bull."

Noting that he needs to find the "outstanding thing" that McLaren has found, Charles Leclerc said:

"We are already putting ourselves under a lot of pressure. Then, of course, there are some talks that it's not something that you want to hear. But the pressure is normal to have it. When you are working for Ferrari, second is never good enough. But we are all aware of it.[...]We want to be winning. [...] But I'm not the only one to say that. All the team knows that it's not good enough and that Ferrari should be winning. And that's what we are putting all our efforts into, is to try and bring Ferrari back to the top."

Last year, Ferrari managed to exclude McLaren before they lost on the last day of the season, This year, however, they are already 197 points off, The Mirror has reported. Mercedes is trailing Ferrari by six points as they head into this week's Grand Prix, with Red Bull being 15 further back in fourth place.

As for Charles Leclerc, he and Lewis Hamilton will be hitting the track for Free Practice 1 and 2 on Friday, June 13. The third practice and qualifying round will take place the following day, and the 2025 Formula 1 Pirelli Grand Prix du Canada will be held on Sunday, June 15.

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