Charles Leclerc No Longer the ‘Pretty Boy’ of Ferrari as Carlos Sainz Steals the Spotlight at Maranello

Following the conclusion of the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz saw a massive revival in his charisma within the team and on the outside. He has also shown that he can be banked on as much as Charles Leclerc. Now, Joan Villadelprat, former Benetton mechanic came out to snub the Monegasque to bring parity to Sainz’s name, as per El Confidencial.

The Monza race saw the Spanish driver give his best performance so far. He not only picked up his first pole position this season, but also displayed brilliant defense against the likes of Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, and even his teammate Leclerc.

🇮🇹It was a great weekend and to celebrate a podium with the tifosi is the perfect icing on the cake! Unfortunately P3 was the maximum. Good battles with the Red Bulls and Charles. I hope people enjoyed it as much as I did. Next Singapore!

👉https://t.co/lD6nZizQhb pic.twitter.com/W7aner87Ia

— Carlos Sainz (@Carlossainz55) September 3, 2023

After seeing the valiant effort put in by the Spaniard, Villadelprat praised him in public. He also made a statement that said the 29-year-old is as vital as his teammate at the Scuderia.

Charles Leclerc loses his spot to impressive Carlos Sainz

Villadelprat worked as the head of mechanics at Benetton back in the 80s. He later was the team principal the year Michael Schumacher joined F1. Nevertheless, it is Sainz who brings the former to the news after he calls Ferrari out on their bias.

Talking about this, he said, “First, it silences some voices from Ferrari, which makes us rethink that perhaps Leclerc is the pretty boy, but perhaps he is not so pretty and there are others just as pretty.”

We’re in this together 🤝 pic.twitter.com/YChNxDkU6V

— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) September 10, 2023

Following this, he also added, “Well, Leclerc is no longer so magical, because Carlos has shown him that a turn can also be fast.” However, Sainz’s father Carlos Sainz Sr. was also unhappy with how his son had a rugged getaway at Monza.

Sainz Sr. wants his son to question Ferrari’s authority

The 2023 Italian Grand Prix saw Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc have a never-ending tussle as the Monegasque tried his very best to overtake the Spanish driver.

Nevertheless, this was not taken well by Sainz’s father as he wanted his son to question the team’s authority. Sainz Sr. thinks that when Leclerc was leading, Ferrari asked Sainz to hold the position as happened in Austria and Canada.

However, things changed when his son was leading. Furthermore, the risky wheel-to-wheel battle also puts the drivers and the team at risk. Although team principal Fred Vasseur asked for accountability from both drivers for their on-track decision at Autodromo Nazionale Monza.