To fight Verstappen and Hamilton for the title? I’m ready, Leclerc proclaims. Ferrari driver also admits what he needs to improve

Will Charles Leclerc join the fight for the world championship next season? He says he is ready for exactly that, especially after last year, where the title chase was a disaster. At the same time, the Monegasque driver would like to see more drivers join the title battle.

In the 2022 season, it first looked like a clear title challenge when Leclerc was on top of the drivers’ championship with 71 points after three races. And with a 34-point lead over George Russell.

But then came a series of mistakes and strategic disasters for Ferrari that gradually dashed Leclerc’s hopes of winning the championship. This story, it should be noted, is probably one that every Formula One fan knows all too well.

Max Verstappen eventually won the championship after the Japanese Grand Prix, and Red Bull also won the Constructors’ Cup, ending Mercedes’ hegemony. It had won eight previous editions in a row.

I’m ready to go for the title!

However, Leclerc let it be known in a recent interview with the well-known Racing News 365 website that he is ready to fight for the title with Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton in the 2023 season.

“I would like to see Lewis and Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari just on the same level to fight for the title. That would be amazing and yes, I feel ready,” Leclerc said in that interview.

And he also mentioned that what happened during 2022 will of course help him better focus on what he needs to change for the better in the upcoming season.

“It changes the fight for victory, just because of the mindset and things like that. In the end, I just have to do what I did last year. Optimise the work I have to do in the car, try to improve as a team and all those things,” he added.

Whether Leclerc can win the world title next season is a really big and very difficult question at the moment. For it will depend not only on his performance, but also, as is often the case in the queen of motorsport, on whether Ferrari can come up with a workable and best concept car.

F1, Racing News 365