Leclerc And Verstappen Await Fierce Competition In F1 2024

Charles Leclerc (Instagram)

JAKARTA - Ferrari racer Charles Leclerc and Red Bull racer Max Verstappen are looking forward to fierce competition between the two in Formula 1 season 2024.

For Leclerc, the competitive instincts between himself and Verstappen have existed since they were both small because they are fierce competitors on the carting scene.

"I think we know that we are very fast because we are already competitive in carting and every time we change categories, we will always be competitive," Leclerc said, quoted by Antara from the official Formula 1 website on Sunday.

"However, at that time, F1 was still feeling very far away, so we couldn't imagine being there yet," he added.

Although now Verstappen has tasted more wins than himself, even having won three world titles, Leclerc admits to being more motivated to be able to improve performance and wants to become Verstappen's closest competitor again.

The racer from Monaco then recalled interesting moments with Verstappen when they both raced as child racers.

I have very good memories (when competing in carting). There are also other memories that are not good enough, but become important and good with age," said Leclerc.

"You get older and remember the moments you mightn't enjoy at the time, it's so funny. It was a good time," he added.

Agreeing, Verstappen thinks Leclerc is a racer who never gives up and is competitive. This is evident from Leclerc who won pole, climbed the podium, and won the race for Ferrari.

"I always think, if I make it to F1, then Charles will also succeed," said Verstappen.

"For me, it's never surprising that Charles is sitting here and of course, after that you need a bit of luck to be in the right team to be in the front row, but it's no surprise that we're sitting here together."

Meanwhile, the Formula 1 pre-season trial session for this year will last for three days in Bahrain on February 21-23.

After that, Formula 1 for the 2024 season will be opened in Bahrain from February 29 to March 2.