Leclerc pens heartfelt tribute to Ferrari ally after stunning exit

Charles Leclerc has reacted to the news of a surprise Formula 1 departure.

The Ferrari star has had a fair start to his 2024 season, and currently sits third in the drivers' championship, 38 points behind leader Max Verstappen.

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Leclerc will have to deal with a major shakeup in 2025 as seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton partners him at the Scuderia.

Additionally, for the rest of the current season, the Monaco national will need to deal with a key change to his race weekend.

Leclerc wishes engineer well on departure

Leclerc will have to acclimate to a new voice in his ear for future races after Ferrari announced that his now former race engineer Xavi Marcos would be taking up a new role 'in the development of other important company programmes.'

Race engineers play a vital role in F1, and are often heard giving out technical instructions and information over team radio.

Leclerc and Marcos have had a well-documented partnership. The Monegasque has had the same engineer since his debut with the Scuderia, and their radio exchanges have often made for good - if at times confusing and infuriating - listening.

The Ferrari driver has had several fraught exchanges over the radio, but on Instagram Leclerc moved to wish his engineer well for the future.

"Grazie mille di tutto Xavi [Thank you so much for everything, Xavi]," he wrote.

“So many years working together, my first pole, my first win as well as my first year in Ferrari was alongside you and you always got the better out of me by pushing so hard no matter the situation we were in.

“Thank you for everything and good luck for your new adventures in the future."

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A post shared by Charles Leclerc (@charles_leclerc)

Marcos will be replaced by Bryan Bozzi, Leclerc's performance engineer.

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