As reported by Corriere della Sera, it will probably be Arthur Leclerc who will take Sainz’s seat in the FP1 of the rookies to be seen in Abu Dhabi
“Of course the dream is to share the car with my brother one day. It would be wonderful to race at Le Mans with Ferrari and with my brother. It’s my dream and we’re thinking about it a lot.” Arthur Leclerc, Charles’ brother, uttered these words not even twenty days ago, after winning the Italian GT Endurance Championship together with Tommaso Mosca and Giancarlo Fisichella with the Ferrari 296 GT3 of Scuderia Baldini. Now he won’t be in the same car as his more illustrious brother but the hypothesis is growing that can join him as a rookie in the first free practice in Abu Dhabi on December 6th.
Doubts about Antonio Fuoco
That role already seemed to be the prerogative of the Calabrian driver Antonio Fuoco, who had been the protagonist in the recent tests at Fiorano with the F1-75. Fuoco, Italian driver and winner at Le Mans, is a test driver for Ferrari but Maranello seems to have denied this hypothesis, confirming that track tests were part of his role. For Fuoco, a commitment to the post-season tests in Abu Dhabi seems more likely, in which Sainz will get behind the wheel of the Williams for the first time.
The famous brothers in F1
The idea was then suggestive, as Daniele Sparisci revealed in the Corriere della Sera: two Leclercs at the wheel of the Rossa. A beautiful fairy tale that would enrich the short history of family crossbreeding in F1, from Michael and Ralf Schumacher – who stood on the podium sixteen times together – to Jackie Stewart who dedicated one of his many triumphs to his brother Jimmy who participated in only one GP, at Silverstone in 1953. Even less known is Ian Scheckter, Jody’s brother, world champion with the Red in 1979.
The career of Arthur Leclerc
But who is Arthur Leclerc? Twenty-four years old, he started his career as a pilot late because his family couldn’t afford to finance two children. In 2020 he joined the Academy and once he left he got the role of «development driver»that is, that of a driver mostly busy in the simulator, dedicated to the development of the car both from the point of view of set-ups and updates during the season.
He prepares the setups for his brother and Sainz, but this season he has often attended the circuits, especially that of Fiorano, on single-seaters from two years earlier (as required by the regulations) as part of an internal program dedicated to “juniors”. and to the Maranello reserves. He has also been used for Pirelli tire tests, so he knows the mechanics of Formula, and he has also tested the endurance Hypercar.
When he didn’t have a real car he drove anyway (“I always drove in some way because I used the simulator, even if it was the PlayStation with the controller or something. I’ve always liked it. I started seriously at 17, but it’s not like I woke up and thought, ‘Okay, let’s start being a pilot.’ I’d say I’ve had it since birth”) and when asked what he dreamed of as a child the answer came spontaneously: “Of course my biggest dream when I was a child was to be in Formula 1. It still is, I dream it Still. One of my dreams is also to become a Hypercar driver for Ferrari.”
Source: sport.virgilio.it