Gene on Charles Leclerc: His mentality has changed significantly

• F1

Leclerc 2.0′. This is how Marc Gene defines the new Charles Leclerc. The Monegasque made a ‘reset’ during the winter break and updated his ‘software’ after being beaten by his teammate Carlos Sainz last year.

Charles Leclerc started a new era of Formula 1 with a completely different approach than the 2022 season. The Ferrari driver won the Bahrain Grand Prix at the opening of the new season. A week later, Charles found himself once again fighting for first place with world champion Max Verstappen.

In the end he crossed the finish line as runner-up but was very close to a new victory. After two racing weekends in a row, the 24-year-old holds the leading position with 45 points won as he achieved the fastest lap times in both races which brought him extra points.

Former Formula 1 driver and Ferrari ambassador Marc Gene claims that Leclerc has significantly changed his approach, and has completely turned around when it comes to the mentality with which he shows significantly better performance.

"I worked with him on testing in Barcelona and I realized that his mentality had changed. Charles used to be a very emotional driver, but this year he changed and became Leclerc 2.0, ”said Gene. In fact, some things have already changed when he saw the way Carlos Sainz works with a team or a simulator, as well as his long working meetings with engineers after training.

All of this has made Leclerc more involved in these aspects.

Gene on Ferrari

For Gene, this effect was positive: “After the pole position and the victory in Bahrain, I expected to see a much more excited Charles. But I found a much more mature Leclerc, with his feet on the ground.

He realized that the championship is very long and that many things can happen, "he explains. Just one of Ferrari’s problems was that they were an emotional team, where the heart was winning the match. But according to the former driver, this situation in the Italian team has changed.

"Mattia Binotto and Carlos Sainz are key to keeping emotions in check. That is now left to the ‘fans’, but not to the top management of the team. Binotto is half Swiss, and Carlos inherited his father's calmness and hard work.

" Gene is convinced that the current Ferrari and its components are ready to start a new era of victories and titles and adds that the experience gained in these long and difficult years makes the team much stronger.