Atmosphere at Ferrari after the “strange” 2020 already better, says Charles Leclerc

After a “strange atmosphere” at Ferrari in 2020, according to Charles Leclerc, things are already looking up this season, he and his new team-mate Carlos Sainz have already established a good working relationship.

Ferrari crashed to sixth place in the championship in 2020 – their worst result since 1980 – and they couldn’t win a race for the first time since 2016, while Leclerc’s team-mate Sebastian Vettel drove the entire season, knowing it was his last would be the team that decided in May 2020 to replace Sainz for 2021.

Given her expectations of success, Leclerc said during pre-season testing that the atmosphere at Ferrari was weird last year, but things definitely look better for 2021.

READ MORE: 5 things we learned on the final day of testing before the season in Bahrain

“I think there was a strange atmosphere at first, first in 2020 when we saw the reality of things that was much worse than we expected, and there was a time when it wasn’t great. But the mentality changed very quickly and there was great motivation to try to get back to where we want to be, ”he explained.

Another factor in Ferrari’s more positive outlook is the arrival of Sainz from McLaren, with Leclerc sharing some nice words about his new teammate.

Leclerc graduated at 212. the fourth highest number of laps in the test

“Well, first of all he’s a great guy. I think I’ve never spent as much time with him as before the start of the season as I did with other team-mates, so yeah, we get along very, very well and work well together,” explained Leclerc.

READ MORE: Binotto is confident that straight line speed is “no longer a disadvantage” for Ferrari

“Carlos also brings experience from other teams that are very interesting and open up new avenues for us,” he added. “So that’s very interesting, but I think the mentality of the team itself is still as motivated as it was last year, and [we’re] really ready to push to have better days soon.

“He’s also talented and it’s interesting to see and compare the data he has in the car now, even if it’s quite difficult because the conditions change a lot from morning to afternoon.

“But there are interesting things to see, but yeah, I can’t wait to be in the car with him at the same time to make real comparisons.”

TEST DAY 3: Sainz and Räikkönen touch as the test comes to an end

But despite the fact that they get along well so far, Leclerc revealed the pair could battle each other on track this season when asked if he would take on the role of team leader this season. The Monegasque driver spent two years at Ferrari, but the 26-year-old Sainz has spent six seasons in Formula 1.

“Well, in the end I spent more time at Ferrari than Carlos, so I have more experience with Ferrari,” said Leclerc. “I don’t think there is a clear leader and I think [Team Principal] Mattia [Binotto] made clear, but that’s a good thing.

READ MORE: Bizarre end of the test as Sainz and Raikkonen hit Turn 10. tangle

“I’m here in Formula 1 to fight the best and I think Carlos is extremely talented and we will push each other – but as the team mentioned, there is no clear number one or two.”

That leads to an exciting battle within the team for the first race of the season, but will we see Ferrari return to its top form? We should get an idea of ​​when Bahrain will host the first Grand Prix of 2021 at the end of March.