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Charles Leclerc shared a very close relationship with the late F1 driver Jules Bianchi, who suffered from fatal injuries in the 2014 Japanese GP. He has often mentioned how important a role Bianchi played in his younger years, molding him into the racing driver he has now become.
Leclerc holds his godfather Jules Bianchi in high regard as he appraised the latter's talent on various occasions. The Monegasque learned from the best during his formative years, with Bianchi as his role model. Several years later, the Ferrari driver revealed that not only did his godfather inspire him but also saved his racing career.
Charles Leclerc recalled the time in his junior racing years, when his father, Herve Leclerc, ran out of money to fund his karting races. At this pivotal junction of his career, his godfather Bianchi stepped in and helped secure the funding.
"At the end of 2011, I had to quit motorsport because my father unfortunately no longer had the means to pay for my career, but luckily there was Jules who was my sports godfather, who helped me a lot." Leclerc said.
Jules Bianchi talked to Nicholas Todt, the son of former FIA president Jean, to sponsor Leclerc's junior career.
"He called Nicolas [Todt] in mid-2011 saying if I don’t have extra help at the end of the year, I’d have to stop my career." Leclerc added.
Nicholas Todt initially agreed to help, only to please Bianchi. He wanted to finance Leclerc in the kart races and then make his decision for his future career.
However, Nicholas funded Leclerc until he reached F1, as the Monegasque driver went on to build one of the most impressive records in junior racing categories.
He spoke about Leclerc in high regard before the latter made his F1 debut.
"Since that day, he has never disappointed me, quite the contrary." Todt said. "It's a great story and, above all, for me, if one day Charles gets there [F1], I tell myself that up there, Jules has something to do with it. I think that's exactly what Charles thinks."
Leclerc still reminisces about Jules Bianchi for playing a fundamental role in his life and his racing career.
Charles Leclerc sets his target for the Austrian GP
Ahead of the Austrian GP next weekend, Charles Leclerc has set his sight on the podium, as F1 returns to the track he dominated last year. He defeated Red Bull in their backyard a year ago but doesn't expect the same results this season.
The Ferrari driver said in an interview with GIVEMESPORT:
"Last year we had a really good weekend and I hope we'll have just the same this year, but obviously we are not exactly in the same position. Red Bull is quite far in front, but we'll try to maximise the weekend and hopefully we'll bring the good feeling that we had on this track [Montréal] there."
He added:
"And if so then I'm pretty confident we can achieve a podium."
Charles Leclerc is currently seventh in the drivers' standings, scoring Ferrari's sole podium in Baku.
