Charles Leclerc ♌says Michael Schumacher was his Ferrari idol in Formula 1 as he reflects on his rise up the ranks at the Scuderia𓃲.

After joining the Ferrari Driver Academy in 2015, Leclerc’s meteoric ascent saw him becomeಞ a Ferrari works F1 driver in 2019 when he replaced Kimi Raikkonen alongside S♔ebastian Vettel in the team’s driver line-up.

Leclerc has continued to impress, outperforming Vettel last season to ꦅtake fourth place in the F1 drivers’ world championship, and is seen as the Scuderia’s long-term future having signed a new contract keeping him at the team until at least the end of 2024.

Reflecting on his relationship with Ferrari, the Monegasque driver says its most s🎀uccessful driver in Schumacher was his “Ferrari driving hero” when he was junior dreaming of competing in F1.

“The Ferrari dri♏ving hero for me, and I think for many, was probably Michael. I was young when he was winning but it was always very impressive and🙈 any time I was watching Formula 1, especially Ferrari, it was obviously Michael that I was looking at,” Leclerc said in a Ferrari Q&A.

Leclerc’s first visit to Ferrari was as a youngster with Jules Bianchi and feels the prestige and facilities at its Maranello base left a firm impression on him. Bianchi joined the Ferrari Driver Academy in 2009 and had been tipped to become a future Ferrari F1🦄 star before his tragic accident at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix when he later succumbed to his injures.

“I was probably 11 or 12 and it was with Jules Bianchi, I actually arrived in the city but I couldn’t enter Ferrari yet as I didn’t have the pass to go in,” Leclerc said.⛎ “I remember watching at the Ferrari facilities from the outside and being very impressed and dreaming of being in there one day. Now, it is a bit easier for me to go into the factory.

“I joined in 2015 and what I can remember is that it was quite special. I went to Mar🍨anello with my father, I was very shy, very afraid.

“It was very impressive when we entered the gates. Two days later, they🍸 let us know that I was accepted in the Ferrari Drier Academy. It was a great day and a great moment in my career that’s allowed me to arrive where I am now.”