Charles Leclerc has disclosed that he has been in touch with his future Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton in anticipation of the seven-time world champion’s debut with the Scuderia in 2025.
Charles Leclerc has disclosed he’s already been in communication with his soon-to-be Ferrari teammate Lewis Hamilton while Carlos Sainz who had to make room for the seven-time world champion, said that the surprise switch was unexpected.
Hamilton will depart Mercedes at the conclusion of the current season after agreeing to a sensational move to Ferrari in 2025 marking the biggest transfer in Formula 1 history.
Hamilton is scheduled to make his first appearance in public after he decided to leave Mercedes when the Silver Arrows reveal their brand-new 2024 F1 car at Silverstone on Wednesday. He will make an appearance alongside teammate George Russell and team principal Toto Wolff in preparation for his final campaign with the Brackley-based outfit.
Ferrari unveiled their 2024 challenger on Tuesday, confident it will give them the edge to battle Red Bull and Max Verstappen as the new season kicks off in a month in Bahrain.
Nevertheless, Hamilton’s name overshadowed the Scuderia launch event, although the Ferrari PR team attempted to limit queries regarding their high-profile signing.
Hamilton will soon be Leclerc’s teammate at Ferrari as the Monesgague agreed to a new multi-year contract that is expected to last until 2029 days before the announcement of the British driver’s signing.
Leclerc will be teamed with a multiple world champion for the second time in his Formula One career following his pairing with four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel in 2019 and 2020.
Speaking with Racetrackmasters following the official unveiling of Ferrari’s 2024 Formula One car, Leclerc stated that he had already had “discussions” with Hamilton.
“Yes, we’ve had discussions with Lewis, especially when everything was announced and official,” Leclerc said. “We texted each other, of course. As I said, Lewis is a great champion with a lot of experience and so much success.
“It is always interesting to have a new teammate as you learn different ways of working or driving. Even more so when my new teammate is a seven-time world champion.”
There was speculation regarding Leclerc’s knowledge of Hamilton’s 2025 arrival before he made his Ferrari commitment, especially because the Monegasque driver would have probably desired guarantees regarding the team’s direction.
Leclerc stated unequivocally that he was aware of Hamilton’s arrival but refrained from commenting further out of respect for his current teammate Carlos Sainz.
“These kinds of deals are not finalised overnight,” he added. “So it takes time and I was aware of those discussions before signing my deal so it didn’t come out as a surprise after signing.
“Then for the rest, I don’t want to comment that much, mostly out of respect for Carlos. We’ve had great years together and we have one year left together to do. We will do absolutely everything to finish on the highest note possible.
“Obviously, Lewis is an incredible driver, the most successful in history, with a lot of experience as well which he will bring to the team and myself, which is a good thing, but again, with Carlos it’s being great and we have one more year together to try and do the best job possible.”
Ferrari hopes Hamilton, who has won a record 103 races, can lead them to the coveted drivers’ championship given they haven’t secured one since 2007.
