“I’m in love with Charles Leclerc” – Jean Alesi says 16-time pole winner reminds him of Ayrton Senna

Jean Alesi thinks the chances of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc racing for the title are stronger than it was at the start of the season.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc started the 2022 season by taking the win but was soon left to endure three months of bad luck between the Australian GP to Austrian GP.

Sometimes it was because of reliability issues, other times it was due to poor strategy. But eventually, the Monegasque took his long-awaited win at the Austrian GP last time out.

He pipped his rival Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by 1.532 seconds and overtook him multiple times to take home victory. His victory gave a sigh of relief to all his fans, which also includes the former F1 driver Jean Alesi.

When asked if Leclerc’s chances of winning the title have improved, Alesi said, “They are stronger than at the start of the championship when no one knew the level of forces present.”

“When we put the Ferrari on track, it is, on all circuits, between first and fourth position. So Leclerc has a great car. And since he drives it very well, it’s unbeatable.”

The Frenchman went on to say, “Honestly, he impresses me. I’m in love with Charles. Sometimes he reminds me of Ayrton Senna.”

Also Read: Charles Leclerc feels partly French after anthem goof-up in 2017 F2 Championship

Charles Leclerc enters the group of elite drivers with 16 pole positions

The Monegasque driver stormed through the Circuit Paul Ricard to take his 16th career pole position with Ferrari on Saturday’s qualifying session.

Magnifique! @Charles_Leclerc speeds to a 16th career pole 👏#FrenchGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/WSja6qhUUp

— Formula 1 (@F1) July 23, 2022

A prodigy of the Ferrari Academy, Leclerc has now placed himself on the list of elite drivers to have taken the most pole positions in a Ferrari. He is only behind Michael Schumacher, who has 58 poles to his name and Niki Lauda, who has 23.

The 24-year-old took the sixth pole position of the 2022 season at the French GP and Ferrari’s first pole position at Paul Ricard since 1990.

Also Read: Charles Leclerc joins Ferrari’s elite after 16th Career pole position in 2022 French GP