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From strategic blunders to mechanical failures, here is the full litany of Charles Leclerc’s pain in his home race, and whether he can finally break through in 2024
Racing at home in the Monaco Grand Prix has always been special for Charles Leclerc.
But it is a rich history filled with heartbreak.
Leclerc has yet to enjoy winning at home, whether in Formula 2 or in Formula 1, and those years have heartbreak are so painful, they have actually inspired a children’s book. In a book titled Charles Leclerc and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Monaco Grand Prix — which sits on my own coffee table thanks to my dear friend Michael Kist — Anita Driver makes a play on the timeless classic Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, written by Judith Viorst.
The subtitle to Driver’s work? “A book of sadness and disappointment for children.”
Yet, that is Leclerc’s history at home, a tale filled with heartbreak and disappointment. It is a history that even includes a faceplant in a charity soccer match last season. Before Leclerc takes on his home course once more, it is worth a moment to illustrate just how close he has been in the past, and just how bitter his history is at Monaco.
2017: A difficult F2 weekend in Monaco
We start back in 2017, when Leclerc was driving in F2. As we have already highlighted, qualifying is everything in Monaco. If you want to win, your best chance is by starting up front.
Leclerc checked that task off the to-do list back in 2017, qualifying on pole for the F2 Monaco Grand Prix. He entered the race weekend as the leader in the F2 standings, and Monaco was his third-straight pole position to start the year.
However, the Grand Prix, and the sprint race, offered him his first taste of bitterness at home. In the Grand Prix, Leclerc’s Prema race car endured a suspension failure, and he was forced to retire after just 26 laps. In the sprint race, Leclerc tried to execute an overtake at the Rascasse turn, but collided with Norman Nato. Neither driver finished the race.
Writing in Motorsport after the weekend, Leclerc summed up his disappointment this way: “The way the Monaco F2 weekend unfolded for us was hugely disappointing and very hard to take. It was going unexpectedly well, until it went all wrong in the feature race with the mechanical failure. It would’ve been a huge shame at any track, but at home it hurts even more.”
2018: A brake failure in his first F1 Monaco Grand Prix
Monaco in 2017 was just a speed bump on Leclerc’s fast track to the F1 world. He went on to win the F2 Championship, and earned a spot with Sauber (now Alfa Romeo) for the following F1 season. And despite his status as a rookie, Leclerc entered his home race for the first time as an F1 driver on a bit of a high note. After finishing out of the points in his first three races, Leclerc finished P6 at the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and then P10 at the 2018 Spanish Grand Prix.
In his first F1 Monaco Grand Prix Leclerc managed to advance to Q2, before starting the race in 14th position. As the Grand Prix wound down, Leclerc pushing into the points, sitting in 12th place with just eight laps remaining.
But that is when his brakes failed:
Leclerc drove into the back of Brendon Hartley’s Toro Rosso, and both drivers were forced to retire.
Similar to the 2017 F2 Monaco Grand Prix, his inaugural F1 experience in Monaco was one of a few sour notes from a solid rookie campaign. Leclerc finished his 2018 F1 season 13th in the Drivers’ Standings, and it was enough for Ferrari to tab him as a replacement for Kimi Räikkönen for the following season.
Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images
2019: A blunder on Saturday makes for a tough Sunday
In the days leading up to the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix, F1 legend Niki Lauda passed away at the age of 70. The Monaco Grand Prix that year was in many ways a celebration of his life, and what he meant to the sport. “Niki, you are quite simple irreplaceable, there will never be another like you,” said Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff. “It was our honor to call you our Chairman – and my privilege to call you my friend.”
As for Leclerc, his career with Ferrari got off to a tremendous start, as he placed fifth or better in each of the first five races of the year, ahead of the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix. That included his first podium with Ferrari, as he placed third in the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix.
You probably know where this is going.
Leclerc’s 2019 Monaco Grand Prix was marked by one of the many strategic blunders he has endured while with the Scuderia. During the first qualifying session Leclerc had another incident at Rascasse, locking up his tires and spoiling his first attempt. The team left him on the grid with damaged tires to try and post a better time, and he finished in a provisional sixth place.
Ferrari thought that would be enough to see him through to the second qualifying session. But as he was on pit lane, he watched as faster times pushed him down the board, and eventually out of Q2 altogether.
While he qualified 16th, Leclerc started 15th after Antonio Giovinazzi was given a three-place grid penalty for impeding during qualifying. Still, Leclerc knew he would have to pull off something special in the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix to match the first five races of the season. He picked up a few spots in the early going, but a collision with Nico Hülkenberg caused a tire puncture. As he returned to pit lane, the damaged tyre caused further floor damage, and he retired after just 16 laps.
“It’s a shame it happens at home, especially on a track like Monaco starting 15th obviously means that Sunday will be a difficult day,” Leclerc said after the race. “And even more without the rain. But we knew it would be a very difficult day which it has been obviously. Now we need to look forward.”
2021: A pole, but not much else
COVID saw the cancellation of the 2020 Monaco Grand Prix, so Leclerc’s next chance at a home victory came during the 2021 campaign. As with the 2019 season, Leclerc entered the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix on a high note. He had finished in the points in each of the season’s first four races, including a fourth-place finish in the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, and a fourth-place finish in the 2021 Spanish Grand Prix.
His 2021 Monaco Grand Prix, however, highlighted just how thin the line is between qualifying well, and ruining your weekend.
He advanced to Q3, and in that third segment of qualifying Leclerc was sitting on provisional pole. He was on one final push lap during Q3 to try and clinch pole position but pushed it too hard near the Swimming Pool section of the track, and drove into the wall.
A red flag came out, meaning that his provisional pole stood, making him the first Monegasque driver to qualify on pole in Monaco since Louis Chiron back in 1936. It was also the first pole position of the year for Ferrari.
However, the damage was too much, and he could not even start in the Grand Prix on Sunday.
“It was a tough one today. I really felt for the whole team. After what happened in qualifying, the mechanics did an incredible job and gave absolutely everything to get me back on track for the race. I was really looking forward to finally be fighting for the win for us here. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be,” said Leclerc after the Grand Prix. “Not starting the race was difficult to take, especially at home. I was emotional in the car when I realised that there was something wrong. We still have to investigate what exactly was the issue.”
However, Ferrari did not come away empty handed, as Carlos Sainz Jr. secured his first podium with the team, placing second.
“Overall, it was a good weekend for us though. Carlos was strong and consistent and I am happy for him and the whole team for scoring his first podium for Scuderia Ferrari,” added Leclerc. “After a difficult year in 2020, this was a great reward for everyone, both at the track and back home in Maranello, and the team fully deserves it.”
2022: A double-stack to forget
The 2022 Monaco Grand Prix afforded Leclerc perhaps his best chance to date at winning his home race.
So the fact he could not even reach the podium makes this perhaps the toughest of his bitter Monaco pills to swallow.
Red Bull entered the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix just 26 points ahead of Ferrari in the Constructor’s standings, with Max Verstappen just six points clear of Leclerc in the Drivers’ standings. But qualifying saw Ferrari lock out the front row, with Leclerc on pole for the second-straight year, and Sainz in P2.
But then, on Sunday, the skies opened.
Rain appeared just before the start, soaking the track and causing a delayed start. The conditions also forced teams to adjust their strategies for the Grand Prix. Ferrari had both Leclerc and Sainz start on the full wet tires once the race began. Shortly after the start, however, the track began to dry out, and Ferrari brought Leclerc in on Lap 18 to make the switch to the intermediate compound
Then on Lap 22, Ferrari decided to bring Sainz — who was still on the full wets — in to make the stitch to the hard compound. Leclerc was given the same command to box, but as he came down pit lane just behind Sainz for a double-stack, he was told to stay out.
It was too late.
Note: The audio here is not exactly safe for work.
Any chance of Leclerc winning his home race was gone. And he knew it.
In the team’s post-race media report, Leclerc seemed despondent.
“I’m disappointed to have lost this win and it’s a tough one to take, especially at home. It will be important to understand exactly what happened to make sure that this doesn’t happen again,” said Leclerc after the race.
He then outlined the blunders that saw him slide down the grid.
“In the first pit stop, we went from extreme wets to Intermediates, and got undercut by Perez. Three laps later, I stopped again, behind Carlos, and lost two more positions. It’s just impossible to overtake in Monaco without taking huge risks, so I stayed put to bring home as many points as possible and I guess that fourth is the best we could do under these circumstances,” he added. “Mistakes happen, unfortunately today we made too many.”
Ferrari’s then-Team Principal Mattia Binotto admitted to mistakes following the race.
“When you start with your two cars on the front row and you don’t win, it means something went wrong from our side,” said Binotto. “I think we made a few poor decisions and we paid the price. I am sorry for Charles, because it’s his home race, so it was particularly important for him, as indeed it was for all of us.”
Binotto is no longer the Team Principal for the Scuderia.
2023: A Q3 to remember, a faceplant, and a penalty
Last season brought even more disappointment for Leclerc.
As well as a faceplant.
Ahead of last year’s Monaco Grand Prix Leclerc was one of many athletes and personalities taking part in the 30th annual World Stars Football Match, which is held in Monaco ahead of the annual race. The charity game, which raises money for underprivileged children, pits F1 personalities against other athletes and celebrities. Last year Leclerc was the captain of the F1 squad, which also had Fernando Alonso, Pierre Gasly and F1 president Stefano Domenicali on the roster. Their opponents, the Star Team for the Children, included tennis star Novak Djokovic among the players.
Early in the match Leclerc was on the pitch. First feet-first, and then head-first:
Was it foreshadowing for how his weekend would go, or would it set up Leclerc for his greatest triumph?
You probably know the answer.
On Saturday, he put his SF-23 on pole momentarily, only to be nipped at the death by both Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen. Leclerc finished with the third-fastest time, which for a moment gave him a chance in the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix.
“A qualifying lap here is like nowhere else on the calendar and it feels really good to drive,” declared Leclerc in Ferrari’s post-qualifying report. “So all in all I can be happy but I would of course have preferred to be first. For tomorrow, I need a bit more luck than in the past years here. The forecast says there is a chance of rain and if that is the case anything is possible. I will go for it anyway and then we will see where we end up.”
Leclerc’s luck did not even last a few hours, let alone until Sunday.
Following qualifying Leclerc was summoned to meet with race officials for an incident that occurred during the third segment of qualifying. After completing his final push lap Leclerc was on a cooldown lap heading into the tunnel section of the circuit. However, Lando Norris came up on his on a push lap of his own, encountering Leclerc in the tunnel.
In the view of race officials, Norris was “clearly impeded” by Leclerc.
“Leclerc had finished his final lap of Q3 and was in the Turn 4 through Turn 10 complex. Norris was on a fast lap and caught Leclerc in the middle of the tunnel and was clearly impeded,” noted the race stewards in their post-hearing report.
“Both drivers agreed that there was little that Leclerc could have safely done in the tunnel to avoid impeding Norris, given the difficulty in vision due to the light entering and in the tunnel and the change of lines from one side of the tunnel to the other,” continued the officials. “In fact, the Stewards observed that Leclerc reacted in a sensible way to a blue flag displayed by the marshals, but at this point it was too late.”
Leclerc was given a three-place grid penalty, dropping him to P6 for the start of the 2023 Monaco Grand Prix.
That effectively ended any chance of a win at home, given the difficulty in overtaking at Monaco. While Sunday’s race saw some periods of rain, offering a slim chance for Leclerc with some different strategy calls from various teams and some brief slick conditions, his day ended where it started, with Leclerc in P6 at the checkered flag.
“We were on the backfoot from the moment we got the penalty yesterday. When it started to rain we could have gone onto the Inters early, but we decided not to as there were still a lot of cars on slicks and so we decided to wait in the hope of a Safety Car which 90% of the time you would expect here in those conditions,” said Leclerc after last year’s Monaco Grand Prix.
“Of course, with the benefit of hindsight, you might take a different decision but at the time it seemed like a good opportunity to make up a lot of places. I have no regrets about the decisions we made regarding our strategy. It is what it is, but it’s really the grid penalty that worked against us.”
2024: ???
Could 2024 be the year Leclerc finally breaks through after years of heartbreak?
It just might.
In recent weeks the grid seems to have caught Max Verstappen at the front, with both McLaren and Ferrari taking advantage of recent updates to their 2024 challengers. Ferrari in particular looked strong as the week began in Imola, as Leclerc topped the timing sheets in both FP1 and FP2.
Both he and Ferrari could not match that promise in qualifying, as Leclerc placed fourth and Sainz fifth. But a post-race impeding penalty handed down to Oscar Piastri dropped him from second to fifth, promotion both Ferrari drivers up a spot, and to the second row.
That is where Leclerc finished, as he grabbed his second-straight podium — and his fourth grand prix podium of the season — with a third-place finish.
“Yeah, at least it’s a podium. Of course I’m only very happy when I win. And today we didn’t quite make it. We were very fast at the beginning of the stint with the Hard. I started to push to try and put some pressure on Lando but later on they were they were incredibly quick. But all in all, I think the race pace today was quite strong,” said Leclerc on Sunday. “We lacked yesterday in qualifying. After looking, we missed on the first straight especially, which we will look into. On the rest of the lap we were quick so it’s looking good for the for the rest of the season. But yeah, it’s incredible anyway to be on the podium with all the tifosi here in Imola.”
But will he be celebrating with the tifosi in Monaco?
Leclerc believes there is a chance.
“Monaco is very special for me. True that it hasn’t been the most successful race for me until now. However, the pace was always there and that gives me the confidence that it will be the case this year too. However, Monaco is so specific that we need to start a little bit from a blank page,” said Leclerc in the FIA Press Conference following the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
And yeah, free practice is super, super important to build the pace little by little. But I’m confident we’ll be strong. And as I’ve said many times, obviously, it’s the same roads that I took by bus to go to school when I was younger,” added Leclerc. “Now it’s in a Formula 1 car. So that makes it extra special for me. So I’m really looking forward to it. To be in Monaco, a very special track I think for every driver because it’s a very challenging track and extra special for me, as it’s my home race.”
Can he finally deliver in that home race?
