Charles Leclerc has made history as the only F1 driver to bag three poles at the dangerous Baku City Circuit. However, he may have had a good luck charm cheering him on from the sidelines.
Often labeled the World Cup’s “Hottest Fan”, former Miss Croatia Ivana Knoll made her presence known at the Azerbaijan GP. Through a series of Instagram stories, she teased who she was supporting, as it turns out, it was Ferrari’s Prince Charming himself.
🗣 “It was a really, really good lap”
Hear from Charles after that incredible Qualifying 🔥#AzerbaijanGP 🇦🇿 pic.twitter.com/8BOZa4kjjj
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) April 28, 2023
The Croatian bombshell had announced her attendance a week in advance through her social media. “You know I’m a huge fan of formula one”, she’d stated, making her way to Baku as a guest.
Lucky for her, she soon crossed paths with the man making waves in the sport- Charles Leclerc.
Charles Leclerc welcomes Ferrari’s latest fan
On her stories during the event, Knoll asked her fans to guess who her favorite team was. Posing with the famous James Hype song “Ferrari”, she had made her allegiances clear. Further, she went on to post a selfie with their leading man, Leclerc.
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And what a good time to be a Ferrari fan! After an early drought, Leclerc came back soaring at Baku, taking his third pole position at the circuit. Further, he trampled any notion that Ferrari was out of the fight in a thunderous quali session that saw him neck and neck with Max Verstappen.
As the weekend promises more racing on Saturday, surely Leclerc will blaze through the streets of Baku once again. With the star of the show playing to strengths, Knoll is up for an entertaining weekend with the right team.
Leclerc faces one challenge on Sprint Saturday
Despite setting the benchmark on Friday, Leclerc remains cautious. The streets of Baku demand one thing: perfection. With no room for errors, one thing plays on Leclerc’s mind.
First pole of the season, it feels really good and the lap was 🔥
The feeling with the car was really good too, proud @ScuderiaFerrari ❤️ pic.twitter.com/edaZ7tmxV9— Charles Leclerc (@Charles_Leclerc) April 28, 2023
” Ah, it’s gonna be challenging. Because we haven’t run the medium yet, so tomorrow in qualifying will be the first time. And we need to be on it because we only have one set, so no room for mistakes.”
However, he finds solace in the pace of his Ferrari, hoping to pull through in Q3 of the sprint quali. Raising the hopes of the crestfallen Tifosi, all eyes are on Leclerc to fight his way back to the title discussion. With Baku being a bane to others, hopefully, Leclerc will pull off his Azerbaijan magic this weekend.
