“Charles Leclerc impressive”: Romain Grosjean doesn’t skirt around it

Work, during 2022, that “impressed” his former colleague.

Charles Leclerc was one of the protagonists of the last Formula 1 championship, with his three seasonal victories and, above all, the nine pole positions he accumulated over the course of the season. However, the Ferrari driver collected only a second place finish (moreover, in extremis) in the 2022 drivers’ standings, with many insiders wondering what really went wrong. Among them was a former colleague of the Monegasque such as Romain Grosjean.

The driver now involved in IndyCar, but who has driven for Renault, Lotus and Haas in Formula 1, spoke out in an interview granted to the ‘Motorsport Magazine’ podcast. “After the first three Grands Prix in 2022, Leclerc was first with a 46-point lead over Verstappen,” Grosjean recalled. “At that point, thinking about a non-world champion Ferrari would have been crazy. Instead, Charles finished second, moreover only at the end of the championship. That I think triggered his great disappointment.”

Grosjean then focused on the Cavallino driver’s season: “He certainly made some mistakes, but the kind that happen when you have to make up a disadvantage. If you are in front, not making mistakes is easier. This is precisely why I think the work Leclerc has done has been impressive; he has performed brilliantly. All this work will allow him and Ferrari to learn from their mistakes, and I think they will be among the big players on the track in 2023.”