Charles Leclerc will be at the front of Ferrari’s title charge in 2023. The Italian team enjoyed a strong start last season with Leclerc claiming 2 wins in the first 3 races. But the season went downhill for the team since then.
The Monegasque salvaged a P2 finish in Abu Dhabi. But this was far from optimum as the team once led the championship by 46 points.
With the new leadership of Fred Vassuer, Ferrari has promised Leclerc another shot at the title. And with that aim to fix the mistakes from the previous season.
It’s 10th April 2022.
Charles Leclerc and Ferrari have just won the Australian Grand Prix by 20+ seconds.
Charles leads Max Verstappen in the WDC by 46 points.
Max “doesn’t even want to think about the championship” as “it’s more important to finish races.”
Take me back. pic.twitter.com/EX7g5TRIws
— Ferrari News 🐎 (@FanaticsFerrari) September 13, 2022
According to Former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, Charles can challenge Max Verstappen for the title in 2023. But Ferrari needs to be extra cautious and plug their issues before the season begins.
Also Read: “Losing To Lewis Hamilton Wasn’t Difficult” – Felipe Massa On 2008 Title Heartbreak
“Charles Leclerc deserves a competitive car,” says Massa
Felipe Massa reckons Charles Leclerc is a strong contender for the 2023 Driver’s Championship. And The Brazilian believes Ferrari has a competent driver who can challenge Max Verstappen.
He said, “I think Charles is doing a fantastic job. He’s a great driver, he deserves to be in a competitive car. He deserves to have the opportunity to fight for the championship as a driver.”
Leclerc is entering his 5th season with Ferrari. And he can return stronger in his challenge, provided Ferrari does not repeat their mistakes from 2022.
2nd in the Driver and Team’s Championship. We did the best race possible and for that I’m happy.
Thank you for all the support during the year. We’ll work more than ever to do a further step in the right direction to fight for the championship next year ❤️ pic.twitter.com/JAgZHqElgy— Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) November 20, 2022
According to Massa, his former team need to fix their issues from last year to stand a chance of winning the title in 2023. And they need to do it quickly!
Massa claims, “I think they need to fix the problem. They need to improve the things that are not working – on the strategy but also so many other things.”
Felipe Massa stated that for Charles Leclerc to win, Ferrari must fix its problems in 2022. And this isn’t just limited to improving their race strategy, but also addresses the mechanical issues of the season.
Massa feels the team must fix the issues ideally before the season begins. And with Pre-season Testing just a month away, they do not have much time left.
He added, “To win the championship, everything needs to be perfect. For me, when you have a season like this, it’s important to fix things in the right way.”
📰: Charles Leclerc says Ferrari must learn how to execute race days better by working whole fully on tyre management, reliability, strategy, communication and be consistent with it, if they’ll want to challenge for 2023 title.#F1#USGP pic.twitter.com/ryygGL7xHS
— F1 Naija 🇳🇬 (@f1_naija) October 22, 2022
He added, “If you start to change things and you change in the wrong way, that is not good. So, you need to change things in the right way and fix them quickly.”
Ferrari’s new Team Principal Fred Vassuer will have the major challenge of setting up a title-ready team within 2 months of his arrival. But nothing comes easy in Formula 1.
Also Read: Charles Leclerc Lacks In One Area Against Carlos Sainz Ahead Of 2023 Title Challenge
