Ferrari made the bold decision of letting Kimi Raikkonen go and brining in the talented Charles Leclerc.
At a time when there was a change in the top management at Ferrari, the F1 fraternity felt that Ferrari would take the easy way out and keep things steady for at least a year.
Keeping Kimi Raikkonen in the seat would have been the first step to achieve that. He had been pretty solid for Ferrari, was rediscovering some form and had a brilliant equation with Sebastian Vettel.
However, Ferrari wanted to honour Sergio Marchionne’s wish of drafting Leclerc in.
Thus, Raikkonen was asked to make way for the youngster, and the Finn found solace in boyhood team Sauber, essentially resulting in a swap between himself and Charles Leclerc.
16.11.1929
The day we burst into life as an #F1 team.
Read how Enzo Ferrari created a revolution, as we celebrate our 90th birthday. #essereFerrarihttps://t.co/SnFcZCboLY— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) February 13, 2019
7 reasons why @Charles_Leclerc is the number 1 challenger to Lewis Hamilton for the 2019 Formula 1 World Drivers Championship. #F1 #TeamLeclerc pic.twitter.com/MqEv3KH9Eb
— F1 Betting Roundtable (@F1BRT) February 13, 2019
Charles Leclerc has a massive task at hand ahead of the 2019 F1 season, He has been drafted into F1’s elite after just one season in the sport and will have to cope with massive expectations.
Kimi Raikkonen has seen it all in his illustrious career, and has offered some crucial piece of advise to the young man who will be replacing him in that red car.
“Ferrari is a special place to be, we know, sometimes there may be some moments of confusion and I am convinced that it is always better not to get involved and simply do what you have been hired for.” Raikkonen said when asked for some advice for young Charles Leclerc.
Kimi‘s advice to @Charles_Leclerc
Kimi: “Ferrari is a special place to be, we know, sometimes there may be some moments of confusion and I am convinced that it is always better not to get involved and simply do what you have been hired for.”#F1 #Kimi7 pic.twitter.com/lLoVcwTvDC
— Charles Leclerc #16 (@LeclercNews) February 13, 2019
How do you think Charles Leclerc will fare in his first ever season for Ferrari?