Leclerc reveals Vettel comfort text after French GP crash
Charles Leclerc has revealed retiring Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel sent him a text to console the Ferrari driver after his crash out of the French Grand Prix.
On Thursday ahead of this weekend's Hungarian GP, Vettel announced on his newly-launched Instagram account that he would be retiring from F1 at the end of the 2022 season.
The news has led to widespread tributes from his peers on the grid and the wider motorsport world, with former Ferrari team-mate Leclerc also speaking of his admiration for Vettel on Thursday at the Hungaroring.
Leclerc crashed out of the lead in last week's French GP and is now 63 points behind chief title rival Max Verstappen.
PLUS: The 2018 Vettel rut Leclerc must avoid in F1 2022's title fight
Speaking on Thursday, Leclerc revealed Vettel texted him following the French GP to offer support following his crash as the Monegasque spoke of his fond memories of the German.
"There are loads of moments, but it's definitely not an on-track moment," Leclerc replied when asked by Autosport what is favourite memories of Vettel are from their time as Ferrari stablemates between 2019 and 2020.
"It's all the moments at the factory and the way also how our relationship evolved throughout the years because I arrived the first year and I was super-impressed.
"And I think I was probably weird to him because I was just shy and didn't know what to say when I was with him.
"But he's a friend and he always texts me, like he did after Sunday, and always tries to make me feel better when I'm having a tough time.
"So, it's nice to see how much I've grown since I first met him."
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari F1-75, crashes out at Le Beausset
Photo by: Carl Bingham / Motorsport Images
Leclerc owned to up to his Paul Ricard crash being his mistake at the time, and insists now he is not dwelling on it as doing so will not help him.
"Well, I need to," he added when asked how he moved on from the crash.
"There's nothing that will help me [by] dwelling on my mistake or staying in the past on that mistake.
"I did that mistake, it cost me lots of points, I am aware of it. And that's it.
"Now I just need to move on, focus 100% on this weekend, try to do the best possible, try to win this race and then I'm sure it will go well."
PLUS: The epic championship battle Ferrari stumbles have robbed us of
Leclerc also moved to dismiss any suggestions his crash was caused by external factors, with the Ferrari driver noting: "I really hate to say, 'Oh, it's the wind, or a bird' [that caused a crash].
"I'm driving the car ultimately, and I did a mistake. So, yes, the conditions change a little bit every lap – and that's for everyone.
"It's obviously trickier when you are on the limit, but I think everyone is on the limit."
Leclerc's initial radio message when he crashed suggested he had a problem with his throttle pedal, though it was later cleared up by the team that he was simply struggling to engage reverse gear to get out of the barrier.
Commenting on the theories that emerged regarding his crash, Leclerc said: "I understood that there was doubts, but it's just that the torque is limited in first gear.
"So, I was speaking about this, not about anything before. So, there was nothing on the car."
Related video
F1 drivers hope "great ambassador" Vettel stays on as GPDA director
Sad Schumacher says Vettel leaves a "huge hole" in F1
Alpine announces full driver line-up for two car WEC LMP2 attack
Alpine has named the six drivers that will compete for the team in the FIA World Endurance Championship on its step down to the LMP2 division.
Horner: F1 drivers shouldn’t be “robots” amid ban on political statements
Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner has cautioned Formula 1 drivers should not be a “load of robots” in the wake of the FIA’s new restrictions on making statements.
NASCAR Cup LA Coliseum: Truex wins chaotic Clash race
Martin Truex Jr held off Richard Childress Racing team-mates Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch to win the NASCAR Cup pre-season Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Castroneves: “Too early” to think about potential replacement by Blomqvist
Four-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves says it’s too soon to consider Meyer Shank Racing might want to swap him to the IMSA squad and bring Tom Blomqvist over to IndyCar.
The pioneering F1 car that preceded Lotus’s terminal decline
In the hands of Ayrton Senna the actively suspended 99T would be the last F1 race-winning Lotus but, as STUART CODLING reveals, it was a complicated machine that caused more problems than it solved
How Tyrrell became a racing Rubik’s cube as it faded out of F1
Formula 1’s transformation into a global sport meant the gradual extinction for a small team determined to stay true to its low-budget roots. But Tyrrell would eventually be reborn as a world-beating outfit again, explains MAURICE HAMILTON, albeit in different colours…
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
How do the best races of F1 2022 stack up to 2021?
OPINION: A system to score all the grands prix from the past two seasons produces some interesting results and sets a standard that 2023 should surely exceed
Who were the fastest drivers in F1 2022?
Who was the fastest driver in 2022? Everyone has an opinion, but what does the stopwatch say? Obviously, differing car performance has an effect on ultimate laptime – but it’s the relative speed of each car/driver package that’s fascinating and enlightening says ALEX KALINAUCKAS
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.