When the lights go out at Albert Park to usher in the new Formula One season on Sunday morning, performances at the sharp end of the grid will be under intense scrutiny. For Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, the Australian Grand Prix is a long-standing return to the day job, but for Charles Leclerc the race is heavy with import, personal and professional.
When the young Monégasque lines up on the grid, it will be the culmination of one lifelong dream and the beginning of anotheras he attempts to emulate the success of the two four-times world champions ahead of him on the grid.
In July of last year, midway through his domination of the Formula 2 series and on his way to winning the championship, Leclerc was at the Hungaroring where, despite his success and being part of the Ferrari Driver Academy, a future in F1 still seemed a long way off. “It would be a lie if I said I don’t think about it. I do,” he said at the time. “Sometimes I just dream about it but for now it is a dream and I need to make it a reality.” In Australia he has palpably done so and in remarkably short order.
Only 20 years old, Leclerc will start for a reinvigorated Sauber team who, while firmly still at the back of the grid, harbour ambitious intent of which he is a fundamental part. The team have a new deal to use this year’s Ferrari engines. They are branded as Alfa Romeo, a welcome return for the marque that brings a glorious swathe of red to the white Sauber livery. More important, Alfa is owned by Ferrari and the deal comes with the strong backing of its president, Sergio Marchionne. He wants to see the brand and Leclerc do well.
The workforce at Hinwil in Switzerland has increased and will continue to do so throughout the year and the car they have produced is an entirely new concept. Complex and aggressive, it has proved a handful to drive and they have as yet to unlock its potential. Pace, they believe, is coming, though not in Australia.
For Leclerc, it is part of his journey to what is expected to become a seat with Ferrari but, much as he has revelled in coming so far, it is but the first step. “It feels amazing,” he says. “But once you sign you immediately have another goal and another dream. It feels great because I achieved what I have wanted since I was very young but on the other hand I can’t stay on that positive note for too long, this is only the beginning.”
Leclerc has been through an emotional mill to get this far. The death of Jules Bianchi, his godfather and close friend after a crash at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2014 was hard to deal with. Last year, his father died before the fourth round of the F2 season at Baku. He weathered those blows and showed great maturity to maintain his success on track.
Both of these huge influences on his life will be remembered by the driver on Sunday. “My father worked for the last 18 years before he passed for me to get to that point so I will think of him,” he says. “Jules helped me a lot and we were hoping to race together but that did not happen, so I will think of them both in Melbourne. It will be a special weekend for me. It will feel very, very special.”
In 2016, Leclerc won the GP3 series at his first attempt, with Frédéric Vasseur’s ART team. Vasseur had also worked with Leclerc in karting and, now the principal at Sauber, the Frenchman is well placed to judge his new charge. “I know perfectly that he’s fast,” he says. “But the most important thing for me is to have someone charismatic in the team. Able to motivate the guys to be bring the team with him and to be pushy when he has to be pushy and to try and calm everybody down when he has to.”
This is a tall order for someone new to F1 but one on which Vasseur feels confident Leclerc can deliver and that will be invaluable should he make it to Ferrari. But Leclerc can be forgiven a brief time to enjoy the moment on the grid in Melbourne, aware that the real task is just beginning.
“F1 always feels unreal until you arrive and get your first seat,” he says. “When I think about it, it is quite crazy to race against people like Fernando Alonso, when I remember watching him from the balcony in Monaco. But you quickly come back to earth and realise you have to work, this season is very important for me and I really need to deliver.”
Sauber are hopeful they can bring out the best in their car given time. Should they do so, they will be joining what will be hugely competitive midfield and Australia is only the opening round of what is likely to be a bruising season-long bout.
Behind the big three of Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull, competition for fourth will be fierce. The greatest step forward is expected from McLaren. Having ditched Honda for Renault engines and been bullish about the quality of their chassis, a move to the top of the midfield is their minimum target. Reliability problems plagued testing and Alonso has warned that the Australian Grand Prix is likely to be the team’s low point. Having had a short lead time in integrating the engine to the car, the Spaniard is optimistic that rafts of planned upgrades will pay dividends especially in the second part of the season.
Their difficult task will be compounded by a works Renault team fielding their strongest car for several seasons, Force India once again showing they will be able to punch above their weight and the potential dark horses Haas, who have brought a simple but highly effective concept and package to the new season that has proved impressively quick in Australia. The gap to the front remains but behind them margins are going to be tiny.
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