Charles Leclerc hoping for repeat of Ferrari’s Monza fairytale this season

While it's still just the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, Charles Leclerc appears to have his sights focused on the races ahead, including the Italian Grand Prix. The Monegaque driver recently detailed his desire for a repeat of the fairytale win he recorded in 2024.

The Scuderia Ferrari driver who spoke to the media ahead of the Zandvoort race detailed how he was surprised to claim victory at Monza last year.

“If someone had told me last year that we could win at Monza, I wouldn’t have believed it, so I hope we’ll be surprised again.”

The 2024 Italian Grand Prix, which marked Charles Leclerc’s second victory of the campaign, witnessed the Ferrari driver masterfully execute a one-stop overcut strategy to beat McLaren’s duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris to the win in Monza. The victory for Leclerc, who had initially started the race in fourth, marked his and the Scuderia Ferrari team’s first win at their home race since the 2019 season, where Leclerc won the race in front of the Tifosi. Leclerc wasn't expected to win at Monza as there were question marks on his form but he proved his detractors wrong.

Shifting focus to the present race weekend, Charles Leclerc will be hoping to record another impressive result for the Maranello-based outfit at the Dutch Grand Prix. The eight-time race winner had finished on the podium during the 2024 edition of the race.

Charles Leclerc speaks on his objectives for the remainder of the season

Charles Leclerc also weighed in on his and the Ferrari team's objectives ahead of the final 10 races of the campaign. The 27-year-old stressed that he remains motivated despite a few of his goals now out of reach.

The Monegaque, who spoke to the media ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, also expressed happiness with the overall progress the team had made through the campaign.

“Some objectives are now out of reach, but the motivation is still there, and we have clear goals for the rest of the season.”

“We can be happy with the progress we have made over the past few races before the summer break. Sunday at the Belgian Grand Prix, qualifying in Hungary, and in general, the races over the summer saw us constantly take steps forward. We must continue like this with the aim of fighting for the wins, as well as securing second place in the Constructors’ championship.”

Charles Leclerc currently sits in fifth place on the drivers' standings with five podium finishes to his name through the campaign so far. The Ferrari driver stormed to pole position during the Hungarian Grand Prix, but witnessed his weekend finish far from the manner he would have envisaged after suffering a chassis-related problem that saw him slide down to fourth place following the conclusion of the 70-lap event.