Ferrari driver coach Jock Clear is adamant Charles Leclerc is ready to deliver a world championship as soon as the team gives him the car to do it.
Leclerc emerged as one of the fastest qualifiers on the grid since joining Ferrari in 2019, racking up 26 poles so far. His number of poles contrasts with winning ‘just’ seven grands prix, which has netted the Monegasque driver a reputation of being a much better qualifier than racer.
But given a large part of Leclerc’s Ferrari career overlaps with the team having been on the back foot in race trim, particularly in 2022 and 2023, his experienced Ferrari coach Clear feels that that reputation is not warranted, certainly not in 2024.
“His reputation in qualifying has certainly been cemented over those years and people tended to say to me two or three years ago he’s nowhere near as good in the race as he is in qualifying,” Clear told the F1 Nation podcast. “Well, that’s not really fair. It’s just that he’s very, very good at qualifying.
“It’s probably true that we’ve shifted our focus slightly to making the car a better race car. Tyre management is, of course, always a hot topic. But we’ve seen Charles do some very good races. I remember back in ’22 in Austria, where Max [Verstappen] really struggled with tyre degradation, and Charles won that race with a really good drive.
“It’s not that Charles historically hasn’t been good on tyres. I think that as a combination we haven’t been focused that well on tyres.
“What we’ve seen this year is the result of us being more focused on getting the car working really well in the race and looking after those tyres, and Charles learning from previous years and honing those skills of tyre and race management. So, I think you’re just seeing a better representation of Charles as a driver and us as a race team.”
Pole man Charles Leclerc, Scuderia Ferrari, Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 Team, in Parc Ferme after Qualifying
Photo by: Dom Romney / Motorsport Images
Clear believes Leclerc “will deliver” once Ferrari has everything it takes to challenge for the world championship, which hasn’t happened yet in his six-year stay at the team. Leclerc and Ferrari came closest in 2022, but were out-developed by Red Bull as Verstappen romped home to his second straight title, while also throwing away points through various mistakes of their own.
“He’s got what it takes to be a world champion,” Clear said. “He’s got the qualifying pace. My god, I honestly…
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